Plan B
by Kas0114
Summary: God sends a young Castiel to Earth to protect the Winchesters, but Castiel is merely a fledgling the task might be harder than originally thought.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Plan B**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing at all, as far as I know... Unless my mother bought me something I wasn't aware of... **

**Description: God sends a young Castiel to Earth to protect the Winchesters, but Castiel is merely a fledgling and the task might be harder than originally thought. **

**A/N: Hello again or to those of you who are new, hello! I wasn't planning on posting this until I was at least half way done with writing it, but I've had to put my other story on hiatus, so I figured I'd post it up until I can start posting the other one again.  
>I really love Fledgling!Castiel and I wanted to write him so bad... I hope you enjoy reading this. <strong>

**As always, if you see any grammar and spelling mistakes, tell me and I'll fix them. Also, reviews are greatly appreciated! Enjoy!**

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><p>God watched the events unfold before Him, able, but also unable to help. His plan demanded that He step back from this, He could only watch. He sat and watched many of his children die, He watched his youngest, most innocent child turn into a monster, and His two favorite humans deteriorate into insanity. It would all work out in the end, He knew, for He was God, but the pain He watched as it unfolded He could not take.<p>

But that was only in this universe, which did not mean that He couldn't create a new, better life for His children in a different one. He walked down through the years, to the beginning of the Winchester's hardships, when Dean was no more than four years of age and Sam just a babe, and Castiel merely an inexperienced fledgling, lost and confused after the loss of Gabriel. This was the time when the Apocalypse never threatened to happen and the Leviathans were never set free.

Castiel stumbled his way through the hallways of the Lord's house, heading towards where his Father resided, where God resided. He knocked once on the door, and straightened himself in the most dignified way he could muster. He then reached for the doorknob, having to stand on his tiptoes to reach. The door creaked open with the sort of sound you would get from a house that had been lived in for a long time. It slowly moved open to reveal God, sitting at His kitchen table, smiling at him. He gasped in awe, this was the first time he had ever seen his Father, and he never imagined him to be so… Fatherly.

"Hello, Castiel." His Father said, smiling lovingly at him. Castiel merely nodded, and then hurriedly stooped down in a bow, mumbling an apology. "No need for that." He said, walking over to Castiel and picking him up. "I have a very important job for you." He informed seriously, as Castiel looked up at him.

"Anything, Father!" Castiel said, and smiled when God smiled, he was so eager to please. God leaned in close and whispered instructions in Castiel's ear. He could sense the eavesdroppers outside His door, most likely Michael or Raphael. When He had finished giving Castiel his mission, Castiel looked up at him in more awe than he already had, if it were possible. "Thank you for trusting me with such a responsibility. I will protect them." He answered, in his best, most respectful voice. God laughed heartily and placed him back on the floor.

"I have one more request of you, Castiel." Castiel nodded, already agreeing to the extra task. "Have fun!" He ruffled Castiel's hair and exited the room, watching Michael and Raphael skitter down the hall in opposite directions. Castiel was left in the room, head tilted.

"Fun…?"

One pleasant evening, little four years old Dean sat on the couch, holding Sammy, who, for some reason, would not stop crying. He held him up and looked at him critically. "Are you bwoken?" He asked, placing Sammy, who had foregone crying in exchange for trying to keep his wobbly baby head up, back in his lap. He immediately started crying again. "Mommy! Sammy won't stop cwying!" He yelled, and smiled when he saw his mother coming down the stairs, blond hair neatly combed and cascading over her shoulders. She strode over to Dean and picked Sammy up, who was still fussing.

"Was big brother being mean?" She asked, kissing Sam on his head.

"I didn't do anyfing!" Dean whined at her from his seat on the couch. "Tere was a clown on the T.V.!"He pointed accusingly at the offending device.

"Is that what happened?" She asked, before turning her attention to Sam. She lifted him up so he was face to face with her and gave him Eskimo kisses. "Sammy doesn't like clowns, does he?" Sam giggled and threw his pudgy arms in the air. "There we go, all better!" She said, smiling.

Dean reached his hands up to Sammy. "Can I have him back?" Mary shook her head, walking to the kitchen. "Why not, Mommy?" He followed her in to the kitchen and watched her make a bottle.

"It's Sammy's bed time." She said, filling the bottle with formula and carrying it and Sam upstairs, with Dean at her ankles. She laid him down and placed the bottle in his mouth, and Dean leaned into the cradle and gave Sammy a little kiss on the forehead.

"Night, Sammy!" He said cheerily, and Sammy grinned a little toothless grin at him.

"It's time for your bed time too." She told Dean, and scooped him off the floor. "Let's go!" She walked him out of the nursery, keeping the door open a crack and then into his room.

"Not yet, Mommy! I wanna stay up!" Dean said, but his pleas were silenced when she threw him in his bed, disrupting the pillows and he dissolved into a little fit of laughter.

"But you look **so** tired, Dean!" She said as she moved the blanket up to his neck in a snake like motion. Dean giggled again and then yawned. She kissed him on the forehead and shut off the light. "Good night!"

"Good night…"A seven year old Jimmy said hesitantly, when the door shut quietly, signaling the leave of his mother, he surveyed his room, completely dark. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, all the shapes in his room seemed to make scary monsters. They circled around the room, claws making shadows on the walls with the minimal light. His eyes welled up with frightened tears and he hid under the blanket. He missed his nightlight, but his Daddy had said if he was going to become a man, he needed to have no fear of the dark. He desperately prayed to God to save him from the scary shadows that wanted to swallow him up. Tonight, someone answered.

"Hello, Jimmy Novak." A sweet, soft, immaterial voice said.

"W-who's there? God?" Jimmy asked, peeking out from under his blanket. The room was being illuminated by a gentle light from no determinable source and his overhead light was flickering softly and vibrating. Jimmy wanted to be afraid, but the light was so soft and warm, it erased his fears.

"The Father is always with you." The voice assured. "But no. I am Castiel, I am His humble servant."

Jimmy looked about the room, where he seemed completely and utterly alone. "L-like an angel?" Jimmy asked. He remembered in Sunday school how the Preacher told them that angels where God's servants, messengers and soldiers.

"Yes." Castiel answered. "Our Father has sent me to you to request a favor."

"What is it?" Jimmy had already climbing out of bed; his little bare feet were seemingly being eaten by the shaggy carpet.

"I need to use your body as a vessel." Castiel said, Jimmy suddenly realized Castiel was the light, his voice echoing about him as the light pulsed slightly when he talked. "I require your approval first. I must warn you though, if you accept, there is a possibility you will not see your family for a long time." He said truthfully.

Jimmy thought about his family. How his parents were constantly quarrelling about money, and his sudden fascination with God and church. He desperately wanted their approval, but ever since he had begun "walking his faith" as the Pastor called it, they had always given him looks of disapproval. Now the Lord he so faithfully clung to deemed him worth something. His heart swelled. If he left, his parents probably wouldn't miss him, he figured. They would have more money to spend on the stuff they wanted.

"I-I need to say goodbye though…" He said his thought out loud. The light seemed to understand and gathered around him, he felt the soft touch of something downy. It felt like baby bird feathers.

"I understand, I will be back tomorrow for your answer." The light retracted a bit, fading, and Jimmy almost cried with the loss of it. "Your parents do not hate you. They only disapprove of your strong faith." Then he was gone and Jimmy was opening his eyes to see the ceiling, having no recollection of falling to the floor. His overhead light flickered once, then twice, and then went out completely. Jimmy was left in the darkness of the room, with a big decision to make.

The next day, Dean and Sam Winchester lost their mother in a mysterious nursery fire and Jimmy Novak disappeared out of his bedroom without a trace of struggle or foul play, his parents never saw him again.

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><p><strong>TBC... <strong>

**Questions? Comments? Concerns? Leave me a review! Unlike my other story, I'm posting a chapter a week regardless of the amount of reviews I receive (Because the chapters are so short) But that's no reason to slack off!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello again. As promised here is another chapter. **

**Thank you so much for your wonderful reviews and please keep them coming!  
><strong>**As always, please alert me to any grammar or spelling mistakes. Enjoy!**

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><p>It took Castiel five days to find the Winchester house. Partly because he was only a fledgling and couldn't fly well, and also because he kept getting so distracted. There were so many things to see in the human world. When he finally did make it to their house, the Winchesters were obviously not there. Castiel realized how foolish it was to spend a day resting at the zoo. Though the lions had been nice and so had the pandas.<p>

He sighed dejectedly; he was utterly and completely ashamed. Looking up at the top floors of the house he noticed that the windows of the top floor of the Winchester house were blown out, he gasped. Could he have failed his mission already? He flew into the top room, nearly smacking into a wall. The entire room was scorched; on top of that, there was water damage everywhere. He felt the remnants of a demonic presence, one with impossible power.

Then he was downstairs with a thought, almost clocking himself on the table. He needed to practice his landings. The house was almost completely empty except for furniture. He searched around the house, trying to find remnants of the family that had lived in before the fire, trying to find if he had truly failed. He looked under the couch, which held the most remnant essence of the Winchester family. There he found bits of food and a crumpled piece of paper. He pulled it out for examination and shouted in triumph. It was a picture of the Winchester family, all of them sat together, well dressed and smiling their best. He could use this to track them, just holding the picture in his hands allowed him to feel very faintly which way they headed.

_They look happy. _Jimmy's sleep muddled voice spoke up from within their head. That was the problem with being inexperienced and taking on a vessel, it was hard to quiet the soul into sleep. It was also very hard to stop the body's bodily functions. Castiel managed to substantially slow them down, but he still needed to eat every couple of days and use the restroom. Luckily Jimmy had experience in these areas and taught him everything he needed to know about them. He remembered the first time their stomach growled, he almost punched himself.

Back to the present. "Yes, they do. We need to keep it that way." Castiel stated. He sensed something and his head shot up right as someone knocked on the door.

_Should we answer it? _Jimmy asked, now fully awake from his nap.

"They do not seem hostile…" Castiel muttered. He fished out Jimmy's wallet, the one he grabbed before they left, and carefully placed the Winchester's family photo in it. Then he flew outside and right into the arms of a strange woman, who laughed and stumbled upon impact.

"I knew you'd come out here, you sneaky thing!" She said, Castiel didn't sense any hostility from her, but he still knew she was different. He wrenched himself from her grasp.

"Who are you!" He demanded, hastily backing up a safe distance from her. She had dark skin and curly black hair.

"Calm down, boy! It's okay, I'm not gonna hurt you." She raised her hands in a placating gesture, but Castiel was not convinced.

"You will tell me who you are or I will smite you!" He said, raising a hand threateningly. He wasn't exactly sure how you smote stuff, but he would figure it out.

"Honey, put that down before you hurt yourself." She said, completely unafraid. "I'm Missouri Moseley. I know where the Winchesters went." She said, smiling at him gently.

Castiel relaxed slightly, but was still ready for a fight. "Where did they go?" He asked.

"They're after what killed Mary." She explained. Castiel tilted his head.

"Is that what caused the damage up there?" He pointed to the top story of the house and Missouri nodded. He frowned. "I failed…" Tears threatened to make their way past Jimmy's blue eyes, his first mission from his Father and he failed it.

"I know what you're thinking and you haven't failed yet, Honey." Missouri assured, walking over and kneeling by Castiel, placing a hand on the tearful angel's back. "I'll tell you where they're at and you can go find them, that sound good?"

Castiel nodded and wiped a sleeve over his eyes. "That would be ideal, thank you." He looked up at her, a ghost of a smile on his face.

"I sent them on to Nelson, Nevada, that's where I could feel the closest type of energy to what killed Mary." Castiel nodded.

"But it isn't the same, is it?" His face turned serious again. "It is a different creature you sent them after. Why?"

"John needed something, even though I had nothing." Castiel tilted his head again, unfamiliar with human emotions. "You won't understand until later, Honey. For now go find them and do your best." She patted him on the back one last time and before she could stand up from her kneeled position, Castiel was gone.

It was cloudy and gloomy as John pulled up in front of an old gas station; Dean was sat in the back with Sammy, who was stirring after sleeping for the drive. He looked back at Dean and smiled.

"You hungry?" He asked, half heartily trying to sound enthusiastic. Dean shook his head no and turned his attention to Sammy who was now awake and fussy. He stuck his little finger in Sammy's reach and Sam latched onto it, showing no signs of letting go. He calmed down and stared at Dean with wide eyes while he clutched his finger.

"Tough, you're gonna eat something, Dean." He said, getting out of the car and shutting the door behind him. Dean stared at him from the back seat and turned his attention to Sammy, cooing at him.

When John entered the gas station, the first unfortunate thing he saw was that the bathroom was closed, which meant he would have to hold it until the next one. The second unfortunate thing was when he went to the aisle where they kept all their snacks. There was a young boy with dark messy hair and shockingly blue eyes, staring at three nickels, a dime and a quarter in his hand. His brow was furrowed more than any child should know how to and he was muttering things to himself.

"It isn't enough…?" His brow furrows more. "But this coin is worth twenty-five." He points to the quarter in his hand. "But why?" He pauses for a moment. "So it is only a part of one, thus the name 'quarter'." He returns the change to his pocket and moves a hand to his stomach. "I'll go find more of the quarter pieces until we have a whole." He wanders out of the aisle, only to be stopped by John's hand.

"Hey, are you hungry?" John asks, and the kid looks up at him with wide eyes. He stares for a minute before replying.

"Yes." His answered was affirmed by the large growl that sounded from his stomach. He placed his hands over it and looked horrified and embarrassed. "I apologize." _Man, this kid talked weird. _

"Here, I'll buy you something." The kid looked even more horrified.

"I cannot ask you to do that for me." He states seriously. John laughed

"Who says you asked? It was my idea, now go pick something out." He patted the kid's head before he wandered down the aisle again. "Come see me when you've picked something." The kid nodded.

When the strange man sent him down the aisle, Castiel was unsure of what to do.

_He's being really nice! _Jimmyremarked happily.

"Yes." Castiel affirmed. The nice man looked at him oddly, and he shied down another aisle. "What should we request then?" Jimmy was going to reply and Castiel interrupted him. "It should be something nutritious and filling because I may not be able to get food again for a while." Jimmy seemed to agree, albeit with hesitation.

After Castiel had read almost every label in the snack aisle, both he and Jimmy decided a granola bar would be the most filling and healthy snack. Castiel picked one of the small packaged bars and located the nice man in the drinks section.

"That what you want?" The man asked, and Castiel nodded. The man offered to take it from him and Castiel surrendered it with little hesitation. He looked at the bar with a strange look on his face before asking "You sure?"

"Yes." Castiel said, looking at the man earnestly, which honestly came off as slightly creepy.

_Remember to say thank you! _Jimmy chided, and Castiel nodded, drawing a curios look from the man.

"Thank you." He said and they headed to the counter together.

After John had purchased the granola bar for the kid, he said a quick goodbye to him and then headed to the car where Dean was. Before he got in the car he looked back to see the kid sitting on the curb, eating the granola bar and looking very serious about it. His gaze was pulled back to the car when Dean tapped on the window. He opened the door and ducked his head inside.

"Hey!" He held out a bag of snacks to Dean who took it and rummaged through it before pulling out the juice John had bought and handing it back to him. "That's all you want?" Dean nods and turns his attention to a sleeping Sammy. John turned his head back to the kid, who had finished his granola bar and was now sitting on the curb, talking to who John assumed to be himself. "Hang on, I'm gonna go talk to someone. I'll be right back." Dean nodded and watched his father leave.

John approached the boy sitting on the curb and was greeted by bright blue eyes. "Hello, sir." The boy said.

"Where're your parents?" John got right to the point and just as he expected, the kid hesitated.

"I.. I uh… They… Are not… Here." The kid said hesitantly, looking everywhere but John.

"Where are they?" John asked, tone stern.

"Not here." The kid said finally. He looked down and fidgeted with his hands.

"Where are they?" The kid hesitated, seemingly fighting with himself.

"I don't know." He said finally.

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><p><strong>TBC... (Again, I implore you for reviews. If I know what you guys want to read I may be able to squeeze them in. I've only got up to chapter four written.) <strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hello again. I'm posting this up now because I plan on posting another one tomorrow because I am happy that Castiel will be returning in the next episode of Supernatural. (It has nothing to do with the fact that last night I wrote this story non-stop for a good 4 hours and got all the way up to chapter 7 finished.)**

**So, enjoy, and give me some reviews please! **

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><p>John was furious as soon as those words left the kid's mouth. His parents just left him here? Yeah, he was weird, but he was polite and sweet. Why would anyone leave him?<br>"What's the matter, sir?" The kid asked, voice laden with concern. "Have I said something wrong?" John shook his head, biting back the urge to curse a blue streak at this kid's parents.  
>"No, no you didn't." He thought for a moment. He needed to report this, get the kid back home or to someone who would actually take care of him. "Hey, kid." The kid acknowledged him by looking up at him with big, blue eyes. "Can you tell me your name?"<br>"Castiel." It took the kid only a second to reply, and his voice sounded almost prideful at his name. John on the other hand, almost slapped himself.  
>"What is your last name, Castiel?" John prompted, hoping it wasn't as ridiculous as his first. Castiel just looked puzzled, brow furrowed.<br>"What do you mean? My only name is Castiel." He explained, obviously completely confused.  
>"Are you sure? I'm pretty sure everyone has a last name." John said in a teasing manner. He figured Castiel might have just forgotten his last name, or it was too long for him to pronounce. "Like mine. My first name is John, my last name is Winchester. John Winchester" He explained. "So you are Castiel..." He trailed off when he saw that Castiel's eyes had become huge as saucers.<br>"You are John Winchester?" He asked, almost reverently.

"Yeah, why? Do I know you?" John asked, now confused.

"Missouri said that you would be here." Castiel explained, half to himself.

"What? You know her? Why did she send you here?" John asked, voice rising in fear of this little kid who, until a minute ago, was completely innocent.

"I have been looking for you." Castiel said honestly. "I had almost lost all hope when you had vacated your house."

"Why? Why have you been looking for me?" John trailed off for a moment, before it dawned on him. "You're like Missourri, aren't you? You're psychic."

Castiel hesitated for a moment before speaking. "No, Mr. Winchester, I am…" He trailed off.

"You're what?" John pressed. Was the kid psychic and afraid to say?

"No, you are right, I am… Psychic." Castiel finished, looking at his feet for a minute. "I have… reason to believe that your family is danger."

John became incredibly serious. "What do you mean? How do you know?" Castiel looked at him in a sort of reverent fear.

"I was… Told."

"By who?" John demanded, and winced when the boy moved backwards slightly at the harshness of his words.

"The Lord… G-God." Castiel stuttered on God's name, like he wasn't supposed to use it as such.

"Okay, so you're like a prophet? Or what?" John asked, and Castiel looked at his feet again.

"Yes." He finally said after what seemed like ages of thinking.

"Right..." John stared at him critically. "How'd you get here?"

"I…" Castiel was interrupted by a large crack of thunder, which signaled a downpour. Castiel seemed very perturbed by the storm, looking about suspiciously and small hands grasping at his pants.

"Great, now it's raining. We can continue this talk somewhere else." John grabbed Castiel's hand and walked him over to the Impala. Castiel followed, the whole time with his head bowed. John opened the passenger's side door of the Impala roughly, motioning for Castiel to get inside. After he was seated he stared up at John, confused and nervous. John stared back, waiting for him to buckle his seatbelt so they could get going.

"Daddy, who's that?" A small voice interrupted their staring contest from the back seat.

"I'm going to try and help this kid get home." John half-way lied to Dean, who nodded.

"Is he lost?" Dean asked again, and this time Castiel turned around in his seat to answer him before John could.

"No, I have been trying to find you." Castiel said formally, and Dean almost shoved himself behind Sam's car seat, shying away from meeting another little kid.

"Yeah, and we're gonna talk about that. Aren't we?" John asked Castiel.

"Yes, Mr. Winchester." Castiel replied, again turning his attention to his hands.

"Get buckled. We need to get going." John said, and Castiel complied, with some difficulty, struggling at first with the seat belt.

The rest of the ride was silent, except for Castiel's small whispered replies to someone in his head and Dean cooing to Sammy in the back.

John Winchester drove stiffly, stealing glances at Castiel from the corner of his eye when he could. However, when Castiel would look towards him, he would set his eyes back on the road. This perplexed Castiel, surely his vessel wasn't that interesting! He could hear Dean Winchester in the back of the car, cooing to a distressed Samuel Winchester, crying because of the ferocity of the storm outside the car. Dean seemed uncomfortable with it as well, and although Castiel was thankful for the distraction Raphael provided for his thinking, he sent up a prayer for him to lower its intensity.

_Why is he being so mean all of a sudden?_ Jimmy asked. Castiel pondered for a moment, he himself was confused by John Winchester's change of behavior.

"I think he is concerned for his son's safety." Castiel uttered as quiet as he could, head bowed. "And he wants to know what I know… I'm afraid I will disappoint him." He continued in the same tone.

"What?" John asked, turning his head slightly so Castiel knew he was addressing him.

"I am… Praying." Castiel said and John nodded. Castiel had lied so much today, and he had developed a feeling in his vessel's stomach that Jimmy identified as guilt.

_You don't need to feel so bad. Sometimes you have to lie. _Jimmy consoled, although he was also uncomfortable with the lack of truth that had been flowing from their mouth.

"I'm not going to hurt you." John assured, and Castiel doubted him. "I just have some questions and then we're going to get you home… Or to a church, or wherever it is you belong."

"No." Castiel asserted, looking straight at John. "That is not why I'm here. I need to protect you."

John almost chuckled; Castiel could see it on his face. "How are you going to protect me? No offense, but you're kind of tiny." Castiel felt his face heating up.

"I can protect you." He insisted. Jimmy had fallen silent in the proceedings, uncomfortable with any form of arguments.

"Yeah, whatever. I'm still taking you home." John said, and Castiel's brow furrowed.

"No."

"I'm driving." John said, as if that ended the argument. Castiel looked over at the steering wheel, and it jerked left in John's hands causing them to turn down a dirt road. John stomped on the breaks as they rumbled down the bumpy road, it was ineffective.

"Now I am driving." Castiel said and the car gradually slowed down to a speed he was comfortable with on the muddy road.

"What the…? Stop!" John shouted, Castiel didn't listen and sped up a bit to spite him. "Stop! Stop it now, Castiel." John said firmly.

"Let me stay and protect you. Promise that you will." Castiel demanded, determined not to fail in his divine task.

"You're a kid, you're not protecting anyone. I'm supposed to protect you." John shouted, and Castiel caused the car to speed up more.

"Stop!" A little voice from the back seat shouted, and Castiel immediately stopped the car, they all jerked forward and Castiel knocked his head into the dash. He recovered quickly, looking back at Dean.

"I'm sorry." Castiel apologized to Dean, and Dean went and hid behind Sammy's car seat.

"You were making Sammy cry." Dean said. Castiel unbuckled and crawled into the back seat. He peered over into Sammy's seat.

Sammy had just woken up and was rubbing at his eyes. He had pudgy, tear stained cheeks, indicating that he had indeed been crying.

"I'm sorry, Sammy." Castiel said, and Sam grinned a toothless grin from his seat and giggled. Dean smiled too. John looked back at the kid.

"Castiel." John said, and Castiel turned to face him. "Get back up here." Castiel obeyed and when he was properly seated, John spoke. "Castiel?"

Castiel looked at up at John, fixing him with what he hoped was an earnest look. "Yes?"

"Okay." John said simply. Castiel didn't understand exactly what was "okay" so he tilted his head up at John.

John noticed Castiel's peculiar head tilt. "What?" He asked, and Castiel's eyebrows drew together, his eyes examining John like he was the strangest thing he had ever seen.

"What is 'okay'?" Castiel asked, and John sighed.

"You can stay with us." John said, purposely looking away from Castiel "But only for a little while, and if you hurt Sam or Dean, you're out." Castiel nodded seriously.

"I will do my best to protect you. No harm will come to Sam or Dean." Castiel assured.

"Good." John said. This was going to be hard, really hard, and he had a lot of questions, but Castiel made Dean smile, and that's all that mattered.

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><p><strong>TBC tomorrow, my friends. (Reviews please, the make me feel happy and warm and fuzzy inside.)<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Okay, since I'm posting these up so quickly, there's a real danger that there is going to be grammar or spelling mistakes, so as always, if you spot one, let me know and I'll fix it. I also changed up my writing a bit, tell me if you like it, or if you want me to go back to the way I was writing before.**

**Thank you all very much for adding this story to you favorites and story alert. Thank you as well for reviewing. You guys make me feel special and I'm so glad you are enjoying this story.  
>I hope you enjoy this chapter too, and please leave a review and tell me what you think. <strong>

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><p>They had made it the whole drive to the motel, and even managed to get Dean and Sam to bed before John had Castiel cornered in the sad excuse for a dining room. Castiel had managed to push himself so far into the wall that he was flat against it, and John was not backing down.<p>

"Spill it, kid." He said, and Castiel looked at him with that same look he always wore when John used slang, he then looked at his hands and back up at John apologetically.

"I've got nothing to spill." He said sadly. John sighed; this was the sixth time Castiel had taken him literally.

"No. Tell me why we're in danger. Why do we need a prophet to protect us?" John was still iffy on the prophet thing. But Castiel insisted, so he played along.

"What you are after. It is a demon." Castiel told John, and John was taken aback a bit.

"But Missouri said it was too powerful to be…" Castiel cut him off.

"It is very powerful. Ancient." Castiel's eyes darkened slightly. "I do not know why it targeted your family, but there is a reason, it is best to be cautious."

"Is what I'm after now it?" John asked, his hands had subconsciously made it to Castiel's shoulders; the movement had made Castiel obviously uncomfortable.

"No." Castiel said bluntly, and John seriously wanted to punch something at that moment. As if Castiel sensed the urge, he shied away from John, pressing himself farther into the wall.

"You're going to help me find that thing." John said, fixing a Castiel with a look that dared him to say no.

"No." Castiel said, and his eyes grew impossibly large when John moved even closer to him. "You are too inexperienced." Castiel said in a slightly weaker voice. "Even with me in your alliance, the demon would destroy us."

John opened his mouth to say something until loud distressed cries erupted from the bedroom. They weren't high enough to be Sam's, so he could only guess it was Dean having nightmares again. He abandoned Castiel to run to the bedroom to check on and possibly wake up his son. When he threw the door open, he was surprised to find Castiel already on the bed, shushing Dean and running a gentle hand through his hair.

"Hush, Dean. Nothing can harm you." Castiel said as Dean started to calm down. "I won't allow anything to harm you."

"What about Sammy…?" Dean's sleepy voice said, startling John.

"Either of you. As long as I am here. Nothing will harm you." Castiel assured, and continued running his hand through Dean's hair. Dean sighed sleepily and soon was sound asleep again.

"Thanks." John said, startling Castiel so that he nearly fell of the bed.

"It is my duty." Castiel said. He slid off the bed and walked to John. "That is also why we cannot go after the demon now. Harm will come to Sammy and Dean." John nodded, albeit grudgingly.

"Fine. I understand." John said. His demeanor changed slightly, to a more cheerful one. He led them out into the living area again, as to not wake Dean. "Now, I'm not sure how old you are…." He trailed off seeing Castiel fight with himself again, finally he seemed to come to an agreement within himself and he looked up to John.

"I am 6 years of age." Castiel said. He looked more like a four or five year old, but definitely didn't sound like one, so John believed him.

"Yup. It's definitely bed time!" John said, and Castiel gave him a confused look.

"Bed time…? There is an allotted time for sleeping?" Castiel asked, and John nodded in seriousness. What kind of household has this kid even come from?

"Yeah. Do you have a routine for before you go to bed?" John asked and Castiel's brow furrowed.

"Routine… You don't just sleep?" He asked. John was getting more perturbed by the second.

"Wow! Your parents must have been horrible!" He accidentally said out loud and Castiel looked offended.

"My Father is wonderful and loving." Castiel said firmly and John nodded in understanding.

"Ah, so you only have a father? That explains it." John said and Castiel frowned disapprovingly at him. "Anyway. First thing to do is get into your pajamas." John told Castiel, and his face scrunched up in another confused look.

"Pajamas?" Castiel said the word like it was foreign.

"Yeah, your clothes that you sleep in." John elaborated.

"These clothes are not good enough for sleeping?" Castiel asked, motioning to his light blue jacket and jeans.

"No. Those would be uncomfortable to sleep in." John said and Castiel's face took on an expression John recognized, the expression of a whiney kid.

"But I've slept in them before!" Castiel whined at him, and John hushed him.

"That might have been okay in your family, but it is not okay in my family." John said firmly, and Castiel opened his mouth to argue. "If you want to stay with us, you have to follow my rules." That quieted Castiel.

"Very well. What sorts of clothes are suitable for sleeping?" Castiel asked, and John went to Dean's duffle bag and dug through it for some pajamas. He emerged triumphant and threw a pair of matching pajamas at Castiel. He caught the pants, but the shirt draped itself over his head. "Mr. Winchester, I do not think this is how you wear these clothes." John laughed.

"Of course not!" He sighed, and helped Castiel get undressed, and then dressed in Dean's pajamas. "There you go. I guess you don't have to brush your teeth tonight, since you don't have a tooth brush… Go wash your face." John pointed to the sink in the bathroom.

Castiel looked at him, slightly confused before wondering into the bathroom. The bathroom was all white, with the exception of yellow rings in the tub and around the toilet. There was a large mirror that showed Castiel a view of his vessel's face. He looked at himself and sighed, unsure of what to do next.

_Let me help you. _Jimmy said cheerfully, and Castiel nodded. _First get a washcloth._ Castiel grabbed for a towel and Jimmy shouted at him. _No! Not that one! It's smaller than that, but it's made of the same stuff. _Castiel huffed and grabbed the correct cloth.

"I know what to do from this point." Castiel assured as he reached for the handle on the sink. He pulled it all the way towards him and yelped when the spout sprayed the water at such a high pressure that it splashed out of the basin and all around the sink. Through Jimmy's laughter he heard John knock on the door.

"You okay in there?" John asked, his voice slightly muffled by the wood. Castiel nodded, before realizing John Winchester couldn't see through walls and replied.

"Yes. The sink startled me." Castiel said truthfully, and Jimmy dissolved into another fit of giggles when John started laughing. He huffed and wet the wash cloth, rubbing his face with it, then reached for dry washcloth and dried his face. When he emerged from the bathroom his face was squeaky clean, he looked up at John who was leaning up against the wall outside the door, waiting for him.

"Okay, looks like you accomplished that okay." John said, and Castiel nodded.

"What now?" He asked earnestly, and John looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Okay, I guess I'll sleep on the couch and you sleep on the other bed." John said and Castiel glanced over to the couch.

"That does not look comfortable." He said, pointing to the piece of furniture. To be honest, it didn't. It had bits and pieces falling off of it, and there was a giant hole in the back of it where stuffing was falling out.

John sighed. "Okay, where do you want to sleep?" John asked, slightly irked at Castiel's defiant and or clueless behavior towards everything.

"With my youngest charges." Castiel said bluntly, and John blinked in confusion.

"I'm guessing you mean Sammy and Dean?" John asked, and Castiel nodded seriously.

"I can keep Dean's and Sammy's nightmares at bay, and if something dangerous were to come near, I would be awake and able to protect them." Castiel reasoned, and John nodded trying to hide a smile. _Like this little kid could protect anyone from anything. _ He was a little weirded out by the nightmare thing, but he chalked it up to Castiel being a prophet.

"Alright then, soldier. Sleep with Sammy and Dean. I'm going to warn you though, Dean rolls and Sammy kicks." John said and Castiel nodded.

"That will not be an issue." Castiel said.

"Off to bed!" John commanded, and Castiel marched off to the bedroom, he half expected him to salute.

Castiel gently scooted in on Dean's side of the bed, the one closest to the window. The position was both strategic and on account of Sammy taking up the entirety of the other side despite his size. When he was situated and had adjusted the covers as Jimmy had directed him, Dean scooted closer to Castiel and sighed. Castiel patted his head tenderly before shutting his eyes. As he slept he was vaguely aware of Sammy's soft breaths and baby noises, as well as Dean's half snores, it was the best night's sleep he or Jimmy had ever had.

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><p><strong>TBC... <strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I'm really happy with all the feedback I've been getting. You're all so supportive. I said I wasn't updating until Friday, but I've got a lot written and I thought it would be cool to post this for you guys. **

**I want to randomly say that tomorrow is parent, teacher conferences and I am so scared because I've had a slight attitude this semester with a lot of the people I dislike. I blame the counselor, she told me I didn't have to be nice to everyone. (It's not really her fault, it's my lack of sleep, but whatever.) I don't know why I felt the need to tell you that, but it's not like you MUST read this, so I guess it's fine. Besides, I found it funny. **

**I had my friend squealing at this chapter when she read it, so I'm guessing it's good. Regardless, give me your opinion, okay? **

**Thank you again and enjoy! **

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><p>The next morning John woke to see Castiel practically buried underneath Dean and Sammy. Dean had rolled over to snuggle up to Castiel during the night, and Sammy apparently followed suit. This cycle repeated until both of them were dog-piling on Castiel. When John turned his gaze to Castiel's face he was awake and staring at him.<p>

"Hello, Mr. Winchester." He whispered. Dean buried his head in Castiel's shoulder. Sammy, who was perched precariously on top of Dean's back, began sucking his thumb. Castiel reached up timidly to run a hand through Dean's hair, who leaned into the touch, sighing.

"How about I help get my kids off of you and we can all get breakfast?" John asked, and at the mention of breakfast, Dean stirred slightly opening green eyes to stare at Castiel for a moment and then blinked.

They stared at each other for a bit longer before Dean apparently realized he was pretty much on top of Castiel and attempted to roll off. Sammy wobbled dangerously from his perch on Dean's back and Castiel reached up to steady them both.

"Sammy is sleeping on top of you, Dean. Do not move or he will fall." Castiel informed seriously and Dean nodded his head slightly, blinking at him sleepily. By that time John had gotten up out of bed and was pulling Sammy off of Dean. He awoke and fussed, but John shushed him and sat him back on the bed. Dean was next to climb off and once he had finally done so, Castiel relaxed into the mattress.

"Why didn't you say something?" John asked, helping Dean get down from the bed.

"I didn't want to disturb you." Castiel said and sat up. The shoulder of Dean's pajamas was sticking to him, wet from Dean's drool. Castiel seemed unaffected by it.

Dean looked at his feet before whispering an apology and walking off to the bathroom. Castiel watched after him for a while before John put a hand on his non-drooly shoulder. "We need to get everybody dressed before we go get breakfast." He said, and Castiel nodded. John went and grabbed some more of Dean's clothes out of the bag, throwing a plain green shirt at Castiel and then pulling a red one with a fire truck on it out for Dean. He then pulled out two identical pairs of jeans and two pairs of socks. He threw Castiel's share of the clothing on the bed, and went to help Dean with his clothes in the bathroom.

Castiel got to work getting dressed, the shirt was easy, he just had to pull it over his head like the night before. The pants were a problem, however. They didn't move as smoothly as the pair he already had on, so getting his feet through them was an issue. He ended up tripping himself when one foot wouldn't completely fit through the leg hole. Sammy laughed at him from the bed and Castiel sighed.

"Sammy, do not mock me, you cannot even feed yourself." Castiel said, giving Sammy a stern look. Sammy just giggled and proceeded to suck on his foot. Castiel managed to get on Dean's pants, and went on a scavenger hunt for his jacket, that he found John had placed on the couch. He wiggled it on, and then stared dumbly at the device that fastened the two edges together. He would have asked Jimmy how to work it, but he was still asleep and Castiel didn't want to disturb him. At that moment, Dean came out of the bathroom, fully dressed, and followed by John. They both looked a bit more melancholy than they had when they had woken up that morning. Castiel fidgeted with the edges of his jacket when all eyes came to rest on him.

"I'm gonna go get Sammy and then we can leave." John said with false cheerfulness, and exited the room. Castiel looked up to Dean, who was looking in the direction his father had exited.

"Good morning, Dean." Castiel said, still fidgeting with the jacket. From what he could remember he had to slide the small metal edge into the bigger metal pulling piece and then pull it up, but he couldn't get it. He gave up, and looked up at Dean, who was walking over to him.

"You do it like this, dummy." Dean said, and zipped the edges of Castiel's jacket together with ease. Castiel looked at him in undisguised awe.

"Thank you." He said and Dean shook his head, once again going silent. John entered the room with a grinning Sammy, and they all left.

As they were walking down the rows of motel rooms to their car, they passed a man who put a foot out and tripped John. John turned and glared at the man who smirked slightly. He had swept back light brown hair and in his mouth what, at first glance, looked like a cigarette, but upon closer inspection was a lollypop. He was also very short, which gave John the idea that he could intimidate him and after the morning talk he had with Dean about his mother, this was going to feel good.

"Hey, Buddy." John said in his most threatening tone. "Think you could watch it next time?" John said, turning and giving the man his best intimidating glare. The dude just snorted and crossed his arms. "You think something's funny?" John asked, slamming a fist next to the guy's head.

"Yeah. You trying to be intimidating while looking like a soccer mom." The man said, smirk never leaving his face.

"Why you son of a-" John was cut off by the man shoving a lollypop in his mouth. The same one that he had in his mouth before he tripped John.

"Shhh… Wouldn't want to expose the kids to that kinda' language. What kind of mom are you?" He said, tsking and crossing his arms. John spat out the lollypop on the guys shoes, huffed and stormed off. Dean followed suit, but Castiel stopped. He turned to the man, brows furrowed.

"Who are you?" Castiel asked innocently, and the guy outright laughed, but it wasn't a normal laugh. It was bitter and Castiel wrinkled his nose at it. "I do not understand what is funny."

"You wouldn't." The man said, and reached to assumedly ruffle Castiel's hair, but was stopped by Dean who smacked his hand away. He had apparently returned to retrieve Castiel. "Woah, little guy, calm down. I wasn't going to hurt him." Dean shook his head, and grabbed Castiel's hand, leading him away. "Hey! Come back here!"

"Go away! You're creepy!" Dean shouted, and it startled both Castiel and John. John turned, face twisted and angry.

"Are we going to have more of a problem?" John asked, stepping mincingly towards the man. The man shrugged.

"That all depends on you." He said, and turned to walk the other direction. Castiel felt a pang of deep sadness in his chest as the man left. He didn't understand why, but nonetheless his eyes welled up with tears. Dean took notice immediately, and grabbed Castiel's face in his hands, squishing his cheeks.

"Daddy! Cas is crying!" Dean said, and balled up a corner of the bottom of his shirt to wipe away the tears that had escaped the newly dubbed Cas' eyes. "Did he hurt you? Daddy and me will beat him up!" Dean said. Cas shook his head and sniffled.

"No. He did not hurt me. I…" He paused and sniffled again. John was kneeling next to him now, eyes soft.

"Come on, bud, he's gone. It's okay now." John soothed, patting Cas on the shoulder while Dean worked hard at keeping tears from running down Cas' cheeks. Sammy thought crying at that moment in time was a brilliant idea and started balling into John's shoulder along with Cas.

"No… That isn't… I…" Castiel continued to stutter until Dean grabbed him into a hug, patting his hand on Cas' back.

"It's okay. Mommy said that hugs make you feel better." Dean said, and Castiel sniffled wetly into Dean's shoulder. "You feel better now?" Dean asked, and Castiel nodded. Sammy quieted down and was now hiccupping into John's shirt.

"What happened?" John asked, when Dean and Cas separated. Castiel hiccupped and grabbed the chest of his jacket.

"It hurt right here." Castiel said and John immediately started checking the area for injuries, unzipping his jacket and lifting his shirt. The area was clear. "No, Mr. Winchester. It hurt, but I'm not that kind of hurt. It just hurt when he left." Castiel said, and John looked to where the man had retreated to and couldn't find him anywhere. He was gone completely. John looked at the area critically, scanning for the tale-tell signs of a demon, but found none. Sighing, he dismissed it as one of Cas' prophet things.

"I'll make sure he doesn't come back. Don't worry." John said, and patted Castiel on the head. Castiel looked at his jacket mournfully.

"What's wrong now?" John asked, already on edge again, getting ready to hand off Sammy to Dean in case Cas needed emergency help.

"I can't fasten it." He said, motioning toward the jacket. Dean sighed and walked up, looking at Castiel sternly.

"Didn't you pay attention at all?" He asked, when Castiel looked guiltily at Dean he continued. "You do it like this." He did it slower so Castiel could watch and zipped up the jacket again. Castiel nodded with a thank you and then an apology.

"Alright guys, hasn't all that crying made you hungry? I know I am." He said cheerily. He hurried them all to the Impala and told Cas to sit in the front seat. He started the car and they were off to a decent looking café a few blocks down the road. Castiel was silent most of the way, hands in his lap, staring in the direction the man had left no matter how far away they got from the motel. Dean was watching Castiel, a worried little frown creasing his features.

"Do you know who that was?" John asked, glancing over to Castiel. He shook his head, and looked at his hands.

"He felt familiar." He said, brow furrowed.

"Felt?" John questioned, and Castiel nodded.

"I did not recognize his face, but very faintly…" Castiel trailed off, a distant look in his eyes.

"Was he a demon?" John whispered, and Castiel shook his head. "Human then?" John asked, a bit louder. Castiel shook his head again.

"I do not know." He said. John sighed.

"I'm going to switch motels just in case." Castiel nodded.

"That would be ideal for Sammy and Dean's protection." Castiel said, a bit louder than John would have wanted him to. Dean's frown deepened slightly, but he didn't say anything.

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><p><strong>TBC... (Castiel returns tomorrow! I'm half excited half dead.)<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm going to start by saying I'm sorry for not posting yesterday, but my body decided that yesterday was the perfect day to start vomiting. I got so bad that I couldn't move or get up. I'm better today though (guessing it was some 24 hour thing or Castiel's beautiful face magically cured me.) I'm still recovering though, and so my concentration is terrible, so I didn't proof read this chapter. I'll probably go back and fix it later, I just wanted to update for you guys. **

**As always, thank you for all the reviews and please keep giving me feedback!**

**I can't help but feel like I made this chapter very Dean/Cas-ish, but I can't bring myself to change it. **

**Aside from that, please enjoy!**

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><p>After the remainder of an awkward quiet car ride, they made it to the café. John herded them all out of the car and into the restaurant without much fuss. Dean held Castiel's hand the whole way and refused to meet John's eyes.<p>

The waitress came in and seated them, the whole while cooing over Sammy, Dean and Castiel. Asking things like, "Are they all yours?" and "How old are they?" and "Do they get along well?" John answered most of the questions truthfully. And then the waitress asked, "Where's their mother?" Everything went silent.

"She's… She's not with us anymore." John said, and the waitress looked embarrassed and hurried off without saying another word. John waited a bit before speaking. "Well, let's decide what we want." He said, sighing and handing the menus to Dean and Castiel, they were kid's menus and came with crayons. Dean couldn't read, so he immediately got to work drawing something on the blank side of the menu. Castiel analyzed the contents of the menu.

"Dean, you want pancakes?" John asked, and Dean nodded, not looking up from his work. "What do you want, Castiel?" John asked, and Castiel looked at him confused.

"What is 'French Toast'?" He asked. "And what do they do to eggs to make them 'scrambled'?" Castiel looked concerned at John.

"French toast is toast that they soak in egg and then fry. To scramble eggs they break the yoke and then stir them while they cook. I think." John said. He hadn't cooked in a while, so he wasn't sure.

"Which tastes better?" Castiel asked next, and John sighed.

"It depends, do you want something sweet, or not?" John asked, and Castiel thought about it long and hard.

"Sweet." Castiel said and John nodded.

"Then get French Toast." John said, and Castiel nodded. John looked to Dean. "You going to order on your own." He stated.

Dean shook his head, looking up from his drawing to meet John's disapproving glare.

"I'm not ordering for you." John said, and Dean huffed, stubborn.

Castiel looked between them, and then to Sammy, who was blowing bubbles with his spit. He whispered as low as he could to Jimmy who had woken up a few minutes prior "What is he doing?" and Jimmy laughed a little bit.

_Babies do that. They think it's cool or something. _

"It's unsanitary." Castiel said in reply.

"Huh? What'd you say, Cas?" John asked, adopting Dean's nickname. Castiel wasn't sure if he liked John using it.

"Nothing, Mr. Winchester." Castiel said. John gave him an apprehensive look, but turned his gaze when the waitress approached.

"I'll take the eggs, sunny side up, with bacon." John said easily, he patted Sammy's head. "And he'll have apple sauce if you have any." He looked to Dean, who stubbornly kept his mouth shut, refusing to even look at the waitress.

"What do you want, Sweetie?" The waitress asked sweetly, and Dean continued to stare blankly at the drawing in front of him.

"I believe he wanted pancakes." Castiel said to the woman, and he felt Dean clasp his hand underneath the table. The waitress nodded.

"And you?" She asked.

"I think it was called French toast." Castiel said, and the waitress nodded.

"Alright, I'll have that out for you in a bit." She winked at Castiel, who stared back with perplexed look on his face.

"You shouldn't have done that." John said, and Castiel looked ashamed. Dean let go of his hand under the table, in order to clench his fists.

"Mommy would've." Dean said and John looked almost offended.

"Dean, your mother isn't here anymore. You have to be a man now." John said, and Castiel blinked.

"I believe Dean is already male." He deadpanned at John. It would have ordinarily been humorous to John, but at the moment, he was pissed, and so it wasn't.

He smacked his hand on the table, causing the cutlery to shake. "You stay out of this, Castiel!" He growled and Castiel's eyes became impossibly wide. Dean looked over to Castiel in concern.

"Cas…?" He asked, and Castiel didn't respond, seemingly in a trance-like state. "Daddy? What's wrong with Cas?" He panicked and shook Castiel a bit. "Cas!"

"Hey, Castiel, come on, stop that." John said, slightly nervous, casting glances around the café. People were staring. "I didn't mean to scare you, bud. You gotta stop that." Castiel blinked, and his eyes welled with tears for the second time that morning, it was different though. John couldn't place a finger on why. He seemed to be panicking.

"Castiel?" Castiel shouted, patting his chest with his hands. "Come back! Where did you go?" He looked frantically about the café, eyes landing on John, his eyes took on an accusatory look. "You did something!" He shouted, his focus lasted on John for all of three seconds before he went back to calling to Castiel.

John sat in his seat, completely stunned.

_I am here, Jimmy. Calm yourself._ Castiel said, and Jimmy did as he said, taking a deep breath. Dean was shaking him and calling Castiel's name, but he ignored it.

"What happened?" Jimmy asked, ignoring the looks he got from John. He vaguely noticed the waitress cautiously approaching with food.

_John Winchester's actions caused your emotions to flare, and your consciousness took over mine. _Castiel explained, and Jimmy furrowed his brow.

"What does that mean?" He questioned frantically and he heard Castiel sigh internally.

"Who the hell are you talking to?" John shouted after the waitress had left, scurrying to the kitchen. He didn't pay the looks he was getting any attention. He grabbed Castiel's shoulder and he flinched harshly. He pulled away and jumped from the booth, running in the direction of the bathrooms, muttering something about Castiel making it better.

"Cas!" Dean followed quickly after him.

"Dean!" John shouted helplessly from the booth. He quickly gathered Sammy and left to follow after them.

Within the bathroom, Dean and Castiel were both sat on the counter with the sinks. Dean was rubbing Castiel's back. Castiel was leaning on him heavily, eyes shut.

"What's going on." John asked sternly, even Sammy had gone quiet.

Dean looked up at him. "He said he needed to sleep to feel better." He said. His gaze accused John of causing this. How the heck could this be his fault?

"What's wrong with him?" John asked, and Dean shrugged.

"He said that he was scared and so Castiel had to go away." Dean explained as best he could.

"Where did Castiel go?" John asked. Great, just great, what was this kid? Was he really a prophet? Did being a prophet cause mental disorders?

"Inside." Dean said and patted Castiel's back.

"So if Castiel was inside, who was that?" John questioned, Dean shrugged again and hugged Castiel or whoever he was closer. "Put him down." John demanded, but Dean just glared at him.

"No." Dean said, hugging the _thing_ closer. He stirred slightly, and little slits of blue peaked out at John.

"I am not going to harm you…" He said weakly, and Dean propped him up, keeping steady hands on his shoulders.

"Castiel… Are you-" Dean started to ask, but John interrupted him.

"Get the hell away from my boy!" He said, grabbing Castiel by his collar. "Who or what are you?" Castiel looked at him blearily, struggling to keep his head up.

"Castiel, a prophet." Castiel said seriously. John shook him.

"You said that. Quit lying." John demanded. Dean was yelling at him, distressed, but John didn't care. If this thing was a danger, then Dean would thank him later.

"Not… Lying." Castiel said, looking over to Dean. "It's okay, Dean." He said, but Dean shook his head.

"Daddy! Let him go! He didn't do anything!" Dean shouted, but John just dropped Castiel and grabbed Dean. "Put me down!" He struggled against John's grip and Sammy started wailing. "Castiel!" Dean screamed, reaching for the thing on the floor.

"Whatever you are, doesn't matter! You come near my family again and I'll kill you!" John shouted, at Castiel who had collapsed on the floor. He slammed the bathroom door and stormed out of the café, holding his screaming kids and casting glares at anyone who looked at him funny.

He strapped them both in the Impala, Dean fighting him the whole way, shouting for Castiel and calling John things like "meany" and "evil".

When he got back to the motel, he threw both the kids on the bed and told them to shut up or he'd give them something to cry about and began packing. That's when the motel phone rang.

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><p><strong>TBC (Probably tomorrow or tonight. I'm not entirely sure.)<strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I have nothing to do right now, so have another chapter! **

**I'm worried that I'm making these chapters too rushed, let me know what you think. **

**Also, I realized John's behavior was a little harsh last chapter and here's my reasoning for it. John was already having issues with Dean earlier, and he was partially blaming Castiel for them. I should have made that more clear. John is also a little more on edge due to a certain someone's appearence in the earlier chapter. (I'm pretty sure everyone knows who he was, but I didn't want to spoil it for those who didn't catch who it was.)**

**Anyway, please enjoy and thank you for your reviews!**

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><p>Castiel lay on the bathroom floor, contemplating what had just happened.<p>

_I'm sorry, I messed it up. _Jimmy said, sounding tearful.

"It is not your fault. I should have better control." Castiel shut his eyes and dozed until Jimmy's voice woke him up again.

_Why are you so sleepy right now?_ Jimmy asked in concern.

"You used up a lot of this body's energy seizing control, and likewise, I used much of my energy trying to take it back." Castiel said, voice weak. "I need to sleep and rest my grace before I go after them again." He said sadly, hating how weak his voice really was.

_You're a little boy, like me. Daddy says that little boys get tired easier than bigger boys, so they have to go to bed early. _Jimmy said, and Castiel nodded.

"I am what you would call a 'Fledgling'. We are usually not allowed to leave Heaven, I see why now." Castiel said. He shut his eyes, apologizing to his Father for failing again.

_Cause you're just a little kid. _Jimmy said. Castiel nodded again, dozing off. Jimmy followed.

When he awoke again he was in the arms of a man, the same one from the motel. They were outside, in the shade of a tree. He looked up at him, and the man smiled down at him. "Hey, welcome back to the land of the living."

"I was not dead." Castiel said, frowning at the man. "I saw you earlier. Who are you?" The man chuckled.

"You can call me Loki." He said. Castiel attempted to get up, but the man smoothed a hand through his hair, applying pressure to hold him down.

"The pagan god." Castiel confirmed. Leaning back into the strangers arms, he frowned again. "That is why you felt strange." He said and the man laughed.

"Yeah, let's go with that." Loki said. His eyes were a honey color that Castiel remembered from somewhere, but couldn't place where. "I saw that whole scene, John Winchester's gonna have some explaining to do." He said. His eyes and tone were dark.

"It was a natural reaction." Castiel said, trying to sit up in Loki's lap again. Once he accomplished the task, he was tired out again and leaned against his shoulder. Loki's hand came up and supported his back. "I am sorry for being so weak." Castiel said earnestly, trying to right himself and failing. "It will only last a while longer."

"No problem." Loki said cheerily. "Just get some sleep, I'll keep you safe." He gently lowered Castiel back into a lying position.

Castiel frowned at him, eyes drooping. "Why…?"

"I don't know." Loki said, shrugging lightly. "Guess I like ya', kid." Castiel wanted to ask more, but fell into a deep, restful sleep. "John's definitely going to pay, though, kid. Nobody hurts my brother."

John went to the phone and answered it cautiously. "Hello…?" He called into the receiver.

"John Winchester! You go back to that poor kid this instant!" Missouri's voice demanded from the other end.

"M-Missouri? How did you know?" John asked, stunned.

"Don't think I don't keep tabs on you. You're a reckless young man, I could tell! But I didn't think you would hurt that poor boy."

"I didn't hurt anybody!" John shouted, and vaguely heard as"Yes you did!" from Dean in the bedroom. "And that's not a kid. It's one of those things that you told me about!" He said. Missouri sighed on the other end of the phone.

"John, he might be, but he's not gonna hurt you. He's got pure intentions towards you." She explained.

"How do you know?" John demanded, and then regretted it immediately when Missouri yelled on the other end.

"Did you forget who I am, boy?" She shouted and John had to hold the phone away from his ear. He moved it closer when she was finished ranting. "It seems you won't have to go get him. Someone's brought him to you." Missouri said, and hung up as there was a knock at the door.

John walked to the door and opened it a fraction, keeping the chain lock hooked. The door flung open regardless, and smacked John square in the face. The man from earlier that morning walked in casually. He looked around and whistled.

"Sure like to pick the dumps, don't you?" He asked, John noticed he had a sleeping or unconscious Castiel in his arms.

"Who are you?" John demanded, making a grab for his gun. However it fizzled out of existence as soon as he touched it.

"The man who's gonna kick your sorry ass if you hurt this kid again." The guy said casually. He walked into the bedroom and John saw red.

"STAY AWAY FROM MY KIDS!" He shouted, flicked a pocket knife out and stabbed the man in the back. The man didn't even flinch, setting Castiel next to a stunned Dean and Sammy. He leaned close to Dean and whispered something in his ear, Dean nodded.

"Come on now. You sure you want to be showing your kids this kind of violence?" He asked sarcastically, pulling the knife from his back. It fizzled out of existence as well, and was replaced by a chocolate bar that he began munching on.

John was stunned silent, as the man walked past him and out of the bedroom. He stopped before exiting the motel. "Oh, and if you hurt him again, I will personally make sure your life is a living hell before I send you there myself." He said.

"Who are you…?" John asked, slightly in awe, but also frightened out of his mind.

"Call me Loki." The man said, and walked out, the door slammed shut behind him.

"Cas?" John ran back into the bedroom to check on Dean and Sammy. Dean was positioned over Castiel, shaking his shoulders. Castiel moved with the shakes like a ragdoll. "Cas, you gotta wake up!" Dean begged, tears in his eyes. "I won't let Daddy scare you anymore! I promise! But you gotta wake up! Please Cas!" He looked up at John and hugged Castiel to his chest. "Go away, Daddy!" Sammy reached for Castiel's sleeve and latched on, fussing as he tugged on it.

"Dean, put him down. He's just sleeping." At least John hoped so. He wasn't so sure with how limp Castiel was in Dean's arms. "He's got to sleep to feel better, remember. You told me that's what he said." Dean was crying now.

"What if he doesn't wake up? What if he dies like Mommy?" He started sobbing into Castiel's hair. John flinched back slightly at the mention of Mary.

"He won't." John promised, although he wasn't sure.

"I will be fine, Dean." Castiel's voice said, and Dean immediately stopped crying to inspect Castiel. Sleepy blue eyes met tearful green ones, and Castiel put a hand on Dean's cheek. He slipped his hand a bit farther out of his jacket sleeve to grasp Sammy's. "Thank you for your concern. I merely need to sleep." Castiel said.

Castiel was mildly frustrated with all the interruptions he'd been having during his sleep. He would have been better by now if everyone would just leave him alone.

_They're worried about you._ Jimmy said and Castiel nodded.

"Cas?" Dean asked, jolting Castiel out of his commune with Jimmy.

"Yes, Dean?" Castiel replied, eyelids drooping slightly. Dean was rubbing his back and it was very soothing.

"You gonna go back to sleep now?" Dean asked. Castiel nodded slightly.

"For how long?" John asked, his tone was more worried than he intended it, but he realized Cas was just a kid, with issues. Issues he was willing to ignore if it meant Dean was that much more cheerful.

Castiel looked thoughtful. "Four… Or six hours." Castiel said, and John was surprised by the exactness of the numbers. "I am unsure, though. When I am interrupted the number grows." Castiel said, he sounded slightly irked, and John could sympathize. When Sammy was first born he would whine and cry every other hour, waking both Marry and John up.

Dean laid Castiel back down on the bed and Castiel released Sammy's little hand. He was fast asleep in under a minute. Dean covered him up carefully, before lifting Sammy from the bed Castiel was on and going to the other bed.

"Daddy?" Dean asked, and John acknowledged him. "Can we… Can Cas stay?" Dean asked, he looked pleading, big green eyes shining.

"Yeah." John said, and Dean's eyes lit up, a smile on his face. It was refreshing to see.

"Forever?" Dean asked, and John paused. He ran a hand over his face and through his hair, heaving a sigh.

"If he wants to stay forever." John said, and Dean nodded. "Dean, why do you like him so much?" John asked. Sure the kid was likable, but Dean has never taken to someone so quickly, even before Marry died. He even started crying the first time John held him. John smiled fondly at the memory.

"I don't know..." Dean paused. "Cause he made Sammy smile." Dean said. "And… He makes me happy." Dean continued a smaller smile on his lips. "And he promised to keep us safe." John nodded, thinking Dean was done talking, but paused when Dean started again. "And he came back when I called him, even though he was so sleepy." Dean looked like he could continue on the rest of the day and well into the night.

"Alright, Dean, I get it." John said, ruffling his hair. "I've got to make a call." Dean nodded and turned his attention to Sammy.

As John left the room, John heard Dean talking to Sammy. "We get to keep him, Sammy!" Dean whispered happily. John turned around and peaked at them from the door. "And he'll be my friend!" Dean said again, Sammy giggled and clapped his hands, obviously exited to see his brother so happy. John smiled before turning to call Missouri; he needed to figure out who or what Loki was. He couldn't possibly be the Norse god. Maybe it would be a good idea to pay her a visit and get Castiel looked at as well.

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><p><strong>TBC <strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Today is the worst day on the planet and I hate it because it is April Fools day and I am a very gullible person, so everything sucks. **

**Anyway, you know what isn't a cruel joke? I've really, actually updated. In this chapter Missouri has to do some rooting around in Cas' head and there are interactions there. I have dialogue italicized when it takes place in someone's mind. Just giving you a heads up to avoid confusion. The writing in this chapter is also pretty weird for a time, it's not a mistake, it's just experimental. Let me know if it's too confusing. **

**Anyway, thank you and enjoy!**

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><p>After a full night's sleep, Castiel recovered as if nothing at all had happened the day before. John had taken the chance to question him about Loki when he awoke before Dean or Sam. Missouri had explained that Loki was a Trickster, a type of creature that played pranks on the high, mighty and arrogant that usually ended with the person dead. That made John uneasy, why was this creature suddenly hanging around his family?<br>Castiel pretty much told John the same thing about Loki as Missouri had said. When John asked why the Trickster had helped him, Castiel couldn't answer, saying that he was confused by the creature's behavior as well. "He said he just liked me." Castiel had said. "He feels familiar, though. As if I know him from somewhere." Neither he nor John could figure out from where.

They were in the car now, driving to Missouri's. John wanted to have Castiel checked out. The kid had refused to say anything about his episode the morning prior, and John figured if Castiel wouldn't give him answers, Missouri would.  
>Dean was asleep in the back seat along with Sammy, and it didn't take the most observant eye to be able to tell that they had stayed up all night watching Castiel. Well, Dean watched Castiel, Sammy just stayed up because his brother was up.<p>

It took a long, all day drive with lots of potty breaks, but they finally made it to Missouri's house. As they pulled up into the driveway, she walked out of the house. John was out first, unstrapping Sammy from his car seat. She walked up to him and gave him a hug before addressing Sammy with a smile. Castiel and Dean exited the car at the same time, Castiel having crawled into the backseat with Dean when they stopped.

Missouri ran over and enveloped them both in a hug, Dean returned it, and Castiel stiffened slightly. "Oh! You guys are cute as buttons!" She said, and Dean blushed. Castiel just stood there confused. Missouri patted him on the head. "It's just a figure of speech." She said, and Castiel nodded, still looking confused. After introductions were all over, they headed into the house. Nobody missed how Dean grabbed Castiel's hand as they headed inside.

"Taken the job of big brother over him too, hm?" Missouri laughed to John who didn't laugh or smile. He didn't mean to be rude; he just wanted to know that Castiel was who he said he was and wasn't a danger. "Boy, calm down. He's pure, whatever he is, I can tell from here." She said. John looked back at the two in toe behind them.

Castiel was walking behind them, staring holes into the back of John's head. Dean was staring holes into Sammy, while walking hand in hand with Castiel. When John turned his head, Castiel did not stop staring like he had hoped. Instead it was like Castiel was trying to communicate telepathically with him through those creepy blue eyes. Missouri giggled.

"Come on, Sweetie. That's never gonna work with John. He's too thick." Missouri said, and Castiel's face took on an enlightened kind of expression.

"I see." He said, like he had suspected that John was thick all along. John sighed.

They all sat down in Missouri's living area, John flopped onto the couch with Sammy, and both Dean and Cas decided to squish themselves into the big chair. Dean stared over at Sammy like a hawk. A lot of the time John felt like an incompetent father with how protective Dean was of Sammy, and now Castiel.

"Well, I'm going to go get some cookies, and then we can get started!" Missouri said, rushing over to the kitchen. A very awkward silence fell over the room. Then a loud belch sounded from Sammy. Castiel tilted his head at him and Dean dissolved into a fit of giggles, which in turn set John off laughing. Castiel just looked lost throughout the whole exchange, head tilted and brow furrowed.

"I see Sammy successfully broke the ice." Missouri said as she reentered the room and John turned red clearing his throat. Missouri shook her head at him fondly, placing the plate of cookies onto the table. She took her place on the loveseat across from Dean and Castiel's chair. "Castiel, can you come over here?" She asked, nicely. Castiel nodded and unsquished himself from the chair. He walked over and Missouri patted the footstool in front of her, Castiel took a seat. "I'm gonna look into that little head of yours, alright?" She said. Castiel tilted his head at her.

"Why?" Castiel asked, it was half curious and half fearful.

"John wants to make sure you're not something that's going to hurt his sons." Missouri explained, sounding more than irked at John. Castiel's brow furrowed, looking over to John.

"I would never harm your sons." Castiel said, looking slightly betrayed. John refused to meet his gaze, a determine frown set in his features. Missouri sighed.

"See? He's thick." She said, knocking slightly on Castiel's head. "Any other person could take one look at those big blue eyes and would _know _you're one of the best little boys out there." She directed most of this sentence at John, who refused to meet her gaze. "But John's not like that, he's been through a lot, so he's careful." Missouri explained, and Castiel nodded.

"I understand." He said. Missouri nodded at him and placed both hands on either side of Castiel's head.

"Now I need you to relax and let me in, okay?" Missouri said, and Castiel complied, eyes closing slowly.

It felt strange to have some searching around in his head, in his grace. He didn't need to worry about shielding it from Missouri, he was just a fledging. It would be a different story if he were fully grown.

He could see Missouri's thoughts as well, bits of sentences and words floating about as she searched inside him, most of them consisting of the words good and pure. It was calm, the feeling he got from her. Until she stumbled upon Jimmy, then Jimmy's panic mixed with her surprise and the resulting emotion was fear. It was unpleasant to say the least.

_Goodness gracious, there are two of you in here! _Missouri exclaimed in surprise. Jimmy ignored her trying to make a feeble attempt to hide.

_Yes. This is Jimmy. _Castiel said. _Calm yourself, Jimmy. She has found you, you cannot hide now. _Jimmy listened and calmed down slightly.

_Who is Jimmy?_ Missouri questioned. Castiel expected having to reveal his identity would be an issue eventually. He couldn't lie forever, his Father had said so.

_My vessel. _Castiel said calmly. He felt an exclamation from Missouri.

_Vessel? _She tried to keep her voice calm. _Castiel, what kind of creature are you? _

_ An angel. _Castiel said and felt another exclamation from Missouri. _I did not tell John Winchester, I was not supposed to until it was necessary. My Father warned me of his distaste of supernatural creatures. I suppose angels fall into that category. _

_ That's partly my fault._ Missouri said. _I'm the one that told him about the supernatural. I told him they were all evil. Of course I didn't know about you. _She amended. A questioning feeling from Castiel.

_You were not aware of angels? _Castiel asked.

_Nobody is, everyone thinks your species is a myth. _Missouri explained. _You're elusive little things. _A feeling of amusement from Missouri floated through. Castiel was still very confused.

_I need to stay with John Winchester. _Castiel said. _But he believes all supernatural creatures are evil. He will not allow me to stay…_

_ He trusts me and I don't have to tell him what you are. _Missouri said. _But you'll need to eventually. _

_Thank you. _Castiel said.

_What about little Jimmy? _Missouri questioned. _Is he stuck in here? _Jimmy shied away from her, sheltering himself deeper in Castiel's grace.

_He can take control whenever he wishes. He has proven as such. _A feeling of understanding came from Missouri.

_I saw that, it scared me at first. I thought John had hurt you somehow. _Missouri replied. _I think Jimmy likes it with you, anyway. Don't you, Jimmy?" _Jimmy still shied away from her, but a brief feeling of conformation from him was all she needed. When Missouri's presence receded from his mind after that, Jimmy calmed exponentially.

_I was afraid she was going to make you go away. _Jimmy said.

_I understand. _Castiel assured. He could vaguely hear voices outside his head. Dean was asking if he was okay again, Missouri was telling John that he had nothing but pure intentions, and Sammy was making loud, happy, shrieking noises.

Castiel opened his eyes and jumped when he saw Dean's face in his. "Hello, Dean." Castiel said, blinking. Dean smiled slightly at him, and grabbed his hand, leading him over to the chair.

"They're talking about you." Dean whispered and Castiel nodded. He sat Castiel into the chair, and went to grab Sammy, toting him over and settling next to Castiel with him in his lap. Sammy clapped and grinned, happy to be next to his big brother and Castiel.

"So nothing? He's safe?" John asked, searching Missouri for signs of lying.

"Oh, he's perfectly fine." Missouri said, looking over at the boys lovingly. "Isn't that cute?" She said, and John sighed.

"Good." He said finally.

"I've got to go check on dinner." Missouri said, exiting the room. "And John, you're staying. I've cooked way too much for just myself." John nodded in agreement. Castiel fidgeted nervously next to Dean.

_You need to tell him, huh?" _Jimmy said, almost sadly. Castiel leaned his head away from Dean who was trying to avoid Sammy grabbing his nose.

"Yes." Castiel whispered.

_Don't worry. I'm sure he'll understand. _Jimmy said, his words were optimistic, but neither of them really believed them.

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><p><strong>TBC... (I promise it will be back to being cute and fluff in about two chapters. Until then, leave me a review and tell me what you think)<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! I apologize for the late update, but I've been really really busy and I couldn't get on fanfiction. **

**So the big reveal's in this chapter, and I hope I made both Castiel and John believable, leave me a review and let me know!**

**So, without further interruption, enjoy!**

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><p>It was after supper. Everyone was getting ready to leave, Castiel had been nervous and twitchy throughout the entire evening. A fact that didn't go unnoticed by Dean or John, and Missouri seemed to be ignoring religiously. When John went to strap Sammy into the car, Castiel purposely hung back at Missouri's doorway, preparing to tell John Winchester the truth.<p>

Castiel didn't understand the nervousness that took the form of flutters in his stomach as the moment to tell him drew near. Missouri placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump.

"You'll be fine, Honey." She said, and Castiel was tempted to ask how she could be so sure. "Mary loved angels." She said simply, and Castiel's face took on a thoughtful frown. It morphed into one of fear when John approached the door. Missouri left, allowing them privacy, shutting the door behind her. Castiel could tell that she didn't go far though, just in case something happened.

"What are you waiting for, Cas? Come on!" John said, grabbing his hand.

"Mr. Winchester, wait." Castiel said firmly, and John turned acknowledging him. "I… I need to tell you something." John's face became very serious, and Castiel unknowingly took a step back, Jimmy's default reaction to these situations. "I-I… I am not human." Castiel said finally. John's face remained serious, but not angry. Castiel could tell it was a false calm he was forcing.

"That explains a lot. Why'd you lie?" John asked, his voice strained.

"I was… Told to." Castiel said. He fidgeted with his hands. "My Father told me of your dislike for the Supernatural."

John's fists clenched, but he did not take any other action. "Who and what are you?" He asked, slight distrust in his voice. He trusted Missouri, she wouldn't lie, Castiel was good, whatever he was, or at least John hoped so.

"My name is Castiel; I am an angel of the Lord." Castiel recited. John raised an eyebrow.

"Prove it." John said. Demons he had seen, and he'd seen a black dog. He'd seen all the proof to know Hell exists, but none to prove the existence of Heaven, of angels.

Castiel closed his eyes, a look of deep concentration on his features. Suddenly, a soft white light enveloped the area in front of Missouri's front door, and Castiel had wings. They too emanated the light, small and downy and white, like a baby dove's. John gasped in awe. "It isn't much," Castiel said, and John had to disagree. "But it is my proof. This is a small portion of my true form." Castiel's eyes opened, if they were an odd shade of blue before, they certainly were now. They glowed like Castiel's wings and were a bright electric blue.

"W-Wow, o-okay." John choked out half of his sentence. He hadn't seen something so... Heavenly before. "W-what else can you do?" John asked, fighting down the awe and resuming his calm. His thoughts strayed to Castiel taking control of the car and driving and then calming Dean's nightmares and the awe returned.

"I can heal injuries of the physical and spiritual variety, I can exorcise minor demons, I can cause objects to obey my will, I can make people sleep and I can fly." Castiel listed off his abilities, saddened by the lack of variety. "It is not much. My true form isn't even bright enough to compete with my brothers'"

"What do you mean by 'true form', what is the form you're in now?" John asked, more curious than anything now. The light emitted from Castiel was pure and calming, it put John at peace.

"This is a vessel." Castiel said, placing a hand on his chest. "Jimmy Novak. You have met him before. You frightened him in the diner." Castiel said.

"Wait, so you're _possessing_ a kid?" John asked, pure disgust in his voice. Castiel flinched slightly.

"He gave me permission." Castiel said, as if it fixed anything.

"He's a kid! He probably didn't know what he was agreeing to!" John shouted, anger rising at Castiel. "Why didn't you go pick on an adult?"

"I am unable to use an adult as my vessel." Castiel said bluntly.

"Why not?" John shouted, and Castiel moved backwards, whispering things to himself. John calmed, he didn't mean to get angry and shout, but the situation was so odd he couldn't help it. He didn't expect the kid to be an _angel_.

Castiel calmed. "Jimmy is my true vessel." He said, and John frowned.

"So you can only use him as a vessel?" John confirmed, and Castiel nodded. John felt there might be more to the story, but didn't push it.

"Why us?" John asked, and Castiel made a face.

"Why you?" He repeated John's question, mulling it over in his mind. "The Lord commanded that you be protected. I am following orders." Castiel said bluntly. John nodded.

"You're a soldier." He said, half to himself. A soldier of God was sent to protect his family. That he could understand. That he could deal with. "Alright, Castiel."

"Alright?" Castiel questioned.

"I kind of already promised Dean you could stay." John said, rubbing the back of his head. "But if you hurt either of my kids you're out, no questions asked." He said sternly. Castiel looked slightly annoyed, but nodded his head nonetheless. The ethereal light that had surrounded them began to fade.

"I would never harm you, Sammy or Dean." Castiel said.

"Okay." John said. "Come on, get in the car." He grabbed Castiel's hand and turned to leave, both were shocked when they met Dean, standing at the very end of the walk up to Missouri's house. "Dean!" John shouted in surprise. Dean ignored him and ran over to Castiel and grabbed him into a hug.

"Mommy was right." Dean said, snuggling into Castiel's shoulder. Castiel patted Dean's back.

"She was right." John agreed, coming over to the two and placing a hand on Dean's shoulder. "We need to get going, you two. Come on, let's get in the car." John said. Dean and Castiel separated. Dean grabbed Castiel's hand and led him over to the car, trying to squeeze them both into the backseat.

"Dean, Castiel needs to sit in the front seat." John said, and Dean frowned.

"I want him to sit with Sammy and me." Dean said, tugging Castiel closer to himself.

"Dean… There is not enough room back here for all three of us." Castiel said in a mournful tone, John sighed.

"He's right, Dean. He needs to sit up here." John said. Dean whined, but eventually Castiel was in the front seat, buckled and ready to go.

John found a motel fairly quickly. He got a room and had Dean and Cas help him tote everything into the room. He had Dean getting ready for bed, rooting through the bags to find clean clothes for both Dean and Castiel.

"We're going to have to get you some clothes. You can't keep wearing Dean's stuff." John said conversationally.

"I do not have an issue with wearing Dean's clothes." Castiel said, oblivious.

"That's not the problem. We're running out of clean clothes, I'm going to have to do laundry tomorrow." John said, laughing slightly. "Can you wear what you wore yesterday again?" John asked, showing him the green pajamas.

"Yes." Castiel said, grabbing the pajamas from John as Dean exited the bathroom. He turned to Dean, smiling slightly. "Hello, Dean."

"Hi, Cas." Dean replied. John handed him the pajamas he had worn the night before and Dean turned and went back to the bathroom to change. Castiel began getting dressed in the living room and John left to give him some privacy.

When Castiel had wiggled into Dean's shirt and pants, Dean exited the bathroom carrying his clothes from the day; he grabbed Castiel's off the floor and threw them into the duffle that John had been digging through earlier. He then moved over to Castiel without saying a word and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the bedroom.

"Dean?" Castiel asked. "You are not upset with me?" His voice held slight fear. Dean shook his head, yawned and then rubbed his eye with the hand that wasn't holding Castiel's.

"Tired." He said, pulling Castiel with him. They entered the room and John was tucking in Sammy, running a hand through his small amount of hair, setting it on end. He turned to them and smiled.

"Bedtime, boys." He said. Dean nodded and let go of Castiel's hand and climbed up on the bed. John ran a hand through his hair too, giving him a kiss on the forehead. Castiel climbed up after Dean and John pulled the blanket over all of them. Castiel wasn't particularly tired, but was content to watch Dean and Sammy sleep and chased away their nightmares.

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><p><strong>To be continued... (Leave me a review and tell me your thoughts!)<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Goodness gracious! Sorry for not replying to basically ANY of your reviews, but I've had no time to actually get around to it. A lot of the times I don't reply because the review is "Good job, write some more." which makes me really happy, but I don't know what to say in reply and then others you write me some awesome enthusiastic review or its super invested and emotional and I just want to gush over how awesome you are and how you are a wonderful person and how I grinned like an idiot while I read the review via email in math class. (My math teacher thought I really liked sin and cosin.) So here's a blanket thank you to all of you and I hope you will continue reading this fic and writing reviews even if I don't reply to them. **

**Also, Apocalyxtic98 said that if I wrote more dialogue and "tedious stuff" (I'm guessing more explanation of environment and actions.) I could make it into a book. I'm actually planning on making a heavily edited PDF of this story once it's finished, with illustrations (If I can get my lazy hands to work. Unless someone who's pretty good at art is willing to draw some stuff?) and it will be free and available on my Deviantart or somewhere I can get it posted and dowloadable. (I'll give my username to you if you ask either with PM or just by review.) I'm going to be a whore/Assbutt here and also offer up my Tumblr URL to those who ask. I often post concept art for this fic (Plus extra short stories in this verse that won't make it in the fanfiction) and other fics I'm working on on that website, just FYI. **

**Um.. I think that's it. Long Author's Note is long. Anyways, please enjoy this chapter!**

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><p>The next day they were all loaded up in the car, on their way to the Laundromat. Castiel was dressed in what John had met him in, blue hoody, blue shirt, and jeans. Dean and Sam were both still in their pajamas. John tried to convince Castiel to do the same, but he seemed appalled by the idea of walking around in clothes that were for sleeping. John realized it probably wasn't a good idea to let Castiel wander around in them anyway, not after what Sammy did, so John conceded and allowed him to get dressed.<p>

Sammy cooed and giggled in the backseat as John pulled into a parking spot, putting the car in park and exiting to get him out. Sammy had been in a good mood since he had woke up that morning, perched on Castiel's stomach. He proceeded to spit up on Castiel as soon as he had sat up, effectively repelling Dean from the bed. Castiel seemed unperturbed by it, taking the offered towel from John and cleaned himself calmly. Since then Sammy had been in the most cheerful mood John had seen him in a good month. Apparently throwing up on an angel put you in a good mood. Who knew?

As they walked into the Laundromat they were assaulted by awes from all ages of women in the mat before they rushed up to John and the kids. Sammy seemed to enjoy the attention, but Dean constantly shied away from them. Castiel placed himself between Dean and the women, squaring his shoulders and sending threatening glares at the women who dared come close. This was counterproductive as Castiel's glare had the ferocity of a baby panda and the women just kept crowding them talking about how protective the "big brother" was.

After a couple minutes of allowing the women to ruffle Cas' hair and poke at Sammy, John managed to shoo them away. Dean was glaring at them from behind Castiel as they retreated back to their laundry. John sighed and ruffled Dean's hair, "You're little lady killers. You know that?" He said, shaking his head fondly at them.

"I didn't kill any of them." Castiel said firmly, seemingly angry at the accusation. Dean patted his shoulder and whispered something in his ear, Castiel adopted one of his enlightened expressions and nodded. "Oh…" He said to John as an apology for his anger. John just shook his head and handed Sammy to Castiel. Castiel held him slightly at arm's length before cuddling him to his chest and tilting his head.

"Don't look at me like that." John said, turning to open their clothing bag. "He's in a Cas mood." As if to prove the statement, Sammy giggled and nuzzled up closely into Cas' neck.

Dean took a seat on the floor, and Cas followed suit as they watched John pretty much throw everything into the washing machine at once and then stop to pick out the whites as an afterthought. He then carried all the white clothing over to a different washing machine and shoved them inside. He added soap to both of them next, or what Castiel assumed was soap it poured like sand, but was white. He then put coins into slots that were installed on the sides of both washers and hit a button at the top; soon their area of the mat was filled with metallic clunking noises.

"Okay, what are we going to do while we wait?" John asked cheerfully, looking over at the three boys sat on the floor. Sammy had nuzzled himself to Castiel and fallen asleep and Dean was leaning on his shoulder well on his way to sleep. "Apparently it's nap time." He said, sitting down on the floor next to Dean and leaned his head on the washing machine behind him, he seemed to be dozing within a few minutes.

Castiel kept a watchful eye on all of them, turning his head to survey the room. He watched people walk in waves of five or six past the Laundromat window, keeping tabs on which ones could be a threat. He found it odd that he had been on Earth so long and no demons seemed to have noticed. His brothers had warned him about them targeting younger angels when they carried out their Father's Will on Earth. He watched several more waves before a face caught his eye. It was hard not to, the man had his face pressed up to the glass, brow furrowed as if he were looking for something, it was Loki. His eyes lit up when he spotted Castiel and waved at him, before running over to the door and opening it.

Castiel's eyes never left Loki until he was settled next to him on the floor. "Hello, Loki." Castiel said. Loki put up a finger and shushed him.

"John doesn't like me much, don't wanna wake him." Loki said, grinning. "How ya' doing, kid?" He asked materializing a candy bar and taking a bite. As an afterthought, he offered Castiel a package of colorfully wrapped hard candies that seemed to come out of nowhere. Castiel accepted it with the hand that wasn't supporting Sammy and inspected it.

"Thank you." Castiel said, setting the candies next to him. "I am well." He said and Loki raised an eyebrow at him.

"You not going to eat any?" Loki asked with a slightly wounded tone. Castiel looked confused but didn't say anything, giving the candies a sideways glance. "That's why I gave them to you!" Loki said, opening the package and pulling out a blue one. He opened it for Castiel and placed it in his hand. Castiel inspected it before placing it in his mouth.

"I was going to save them for Sammy and Dean." Castiel explained with his mouth full. He shut his mouth and looked thoughtful before opening it again. "This tastes pleasant, thank you." Loki chuckled.

"No problem! Wasn't any trouble. Just don't tell John where you got them." Loki said, patting Castiel on the head. He looked like he was about to leave, but Castiel called to him before could.

"Wait! Why did you assist me?" Castiel asked, Loki gave him a strange look.

"I need a reason?" Loki asked, Castiel looked thoughtful for a moment.

"It wouldn't make sense otherwise." Castiel said firmly. Loki chuckled.

"Cas, not everything makes sense." Loki said, getting up to leave, he was half way out of the mat before he turned to Castiel. "But everything's got a reason." He said and was gone, leaving Castiel in deep thought at his words.

_What does that mean? _Jimmy asked, breaking Castiel's concentration.

Castiel was contemplating going after Loki, but was interrupted by a loud, shrill beep, that had him jumping about an inch off the floor. His movement caused Dean's head to bounce slightly from its resting place on Cas' shoulder and he woke with a small groan. John was next to wake up, immediately checking to see if Dean and Sammy were alright, before noticing the laundry was done washing. He got up to transfer the clothing from the washing machine to the drier, leaving Dean and Castiel to their own devices. Castiel reached into the package of candy left for him by Loki and pulled out a yellow one and offered it to Dean. Dean took it and began unwrapping it.

"Thanks." Dean said, giving Castiel a small smile before popping the candy in his mouth and humming thoughtfully. Together Castiel and Dean watched people pass by the Laundromat windows, the amount of people passing by at a time had increased due to it being midday. Sammy was still asleep and nuzzled closer into Castiel's chest. Just as Sammy was settling himself again, Castiel saw it. It was a demon casually strolling past the Laundromat, it looked in through the window and then continued on its way. Its human face was calm, but its demonic one was twisted into a gleeful smile. Castiel handed Sammy to Dean and stood abruptly, running over to John.

"There is a demon." Castiel said quietly, motioning out towards the windows. "I do not know if it knows we are here, but caution should be taken." He warned.

John tensed immediately at the mention of a demon. "Where is it?" He asked, casting a nervous glance around the Laundromat. Castiel tugged on his sleeve and pointed out the window of the Laundromat.

"No, Mr. Winchester, outside. It was moving amongst the crowds." Castiel explained. "Do you want me to track it?" He asked. It looked like he was already starting to do so, eyes adopting a sort of distant look. "If it gets too far, I may lose it."

John was about to say something, but Dean walked up cradling Sammy to his chest, who was fussing. "Daddy, he's hungry." He said, offering Sam up to John.

"Not now, Dean." John said, pushing Sam back into Dean's arms. Dean looked sadly at his little brother then back up at John.

"But-" John gave him a stern look and Dean shut his mouth. Castiel's expression had gone grim and angry, looking at John the way a disapproving parent would.

"Mr. Winchester, take care of your children. I will deal with the demon." Castiel said, and before John could blink he was gone.

Castiel reappeared behind the demon, taking off at a full run towards it. The demon heard him coming and turned a small smile on its vessel's lips. "Hello, little angel." The thing said. Castiel's sneak attack plan was pretty much ruined, but he had a backup plan. He flew the short distance it took to get to the demon, and made sure he was level with its face. The demon looked about confused at Castiel's sudden disappearance when he took flight and then yelped in surprise when Castiel reappeared in its line of sight and slammed a palm on its forehead. It barely had time to open its mouth to scream before Castiel had exorcised it, he wasn't strong enough to kill, but it wouldn't be walking the realm of man anytime soon. People around him screamed and vacated the area as quickly as possible.

"Nice." Castiel whirled around at the uttered word, to see Loki leaning on a street sign sucking on a lollipop and looking pleased.

"It was not as stealthy as I would have liked." Castiel admitted, looking over at the previously possessed man, now regaining consciousness. Loki shrugged.

"Still pretty awesome, kid." He said, ruffling Castiel's hair and walking his way down the now deserted street. Castiel blushed slightly, and nodded.

"Thank you. I suppose I will be seeing you?" Castiel asked, not sure if he was hoping Loki would say yes or no.

"Only if you want to." Loki said vaguely, turning to wink at Castiel before continuing on his merry way. Castiel stood a few more seconds watching him leave and wracking his brain to remember who Loki reminded him of and then left, flying to meet up with the Winchesters once more.

When Castiel finally reappeared, John was shoving now dry clothes into the bag that Castiel had dubbed the clothing bag and Dean was feeding Sammy a bottle carefully. He looked up and stood, bringing Sammy with him. "Where'd you go, Cas?" He asked, looking him over to make sure he hadn't been hurt.

"I had to take care of something." Castiel said, and Dean frowned.

"Did you hafta' go to the potty?" Dean asked, adjusting the bottle so Sammy would get more milk than air. "You can just say so." He blushed slightly. "I hafta' potty, can you hold Sammy?"

"Yes." Castiel grabbed Sammy from Dean. Dean gave him a quick crash course in how to feed a wiggling baby and then dashed off to the restrooms. Castiel watched him go; carefully maneuvering the bottle back into Sammy's mouth every time he pushed it out. John walked over after Dean had left.

"Did you lose him?" John asked nervously. Castiel shook his head.

"I exorcised it. It will not be walking Earth for a time." Castiel said. John looked impressed. Sammy decided that particular time was a great time to make a gurgling cooing noise and spit all the milk in his mouth onto Castiel's sleeve. He sighed. "Sammy, why do you insist on depositing bodily fluids and food on me?" Sammy giggled and clapped his hands and John laughed. Dean returned soon after that, and John loaded them up into the car, they were going to go to a different hotel just in case there were other demons around. Castiel agreed with this plan and soon they were on the highway, headed to a different town.

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><p><strong>To be continued... (I'm pretty sure Bobby shows up next chapter, my friends.) <strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hello! I was sad, and I figured updating would make me feel better, because it usually does. After proofreading this chapter I remembered I got to write grumpy!Cas, which was exciting for me, because he's cute when he's grumpy. Also, Bobby Singer. I hope I wrote him well, this isn't my first time writing him, but I find it difficult because he's gruff but not really mean. **

**Anyway, enjoy, and please leave me a review! It'd be greatly appreciated! **

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><p>Another almost all day drive and they were in Sioux City, South Dakota. John wasn't exactly sure how they got there; he just got in the car and drove as far as he could. Castiel was sitting next to him, playing a game with Dean which involved spelling out small words using the letters off of license plates they saw. Sammy slept almost the entire way, only waking up to be fed and changed and then at one point when John was in a really noisy traffic jam. Now they were trying to find a motel. John was too tired to drive anymore, and Dean was starting to get cranky, frowning and crossing his arms whenever Castiel told him the word he spelled was not a word or spelled incorrectly. He pulled off at the next exit they saw.<p>

It seemed pulling of at that particular exit was a bad idea, because they soon found themselves on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. The farther down the road, the more uneasy Castiel got, scanning the surroundings warily. "Mr. Winchester, I think we should turn around." Castiel said, a ting of uneasiness in his voice.

"I'm thinking the same thing." John agreed, turning down another dirt road in order to make a U-turn. Castiel began to panic, quickly unbuckling and jumping out of his seat. "What's going on?" John shouted in alarm.

"Demons! There are many of them and they are approaching quickly." Castiel shouted. John saw headlights approaching the same direction he was going and cursed. He maneuvered yet another U-turn and drove. With the loss of time from the U-turn, the car was already only about a car's length behind him no matter how hard John pressed his foot on the gas pedal. The car suddenly surged up in a burst of speed and almost rear-ended the Impala. John swerved to the side to avoid it, and Castiel went flying sideways. John only just noticed Castiel was still standing and unbuckled, if John had to hit the brakes, he'd go flying out the windshield.

"Cas, sit down and buckle up!" John shouted, and Castiel gave him the "are-you-insane?" look, but didn't move to sit down. "Now, soldier!" He demanded, and Castiel obeyed sitting down and buckling up in time for the tailing car to hit the rear of the Impala. John fought for control, swerving to the right before finally gaining it again and hitting the gas.

"Daddy!" Dean shouted as John swerved again to avoid another hit from the car. Sammy was wailing loudly in the back seat, and Castiel had himself turned around as far as the locked seatbelt would allow.

John made the mistake of slowing slightly in preparation for a turn down another road to lose the car and got hit from behind. The Impala got knocked to the side and started rolling off the road. John looked to the side to see Castiel had unbuckled himself and was reaching for John. Two fingers to his head and John was outside the car, watching as it hurdled into a ditch, on the side of the road.

"Mr. Winchester." Castiel called from beside John. John jerked harshly and looked over to them, eyes going wide. Castiel was holding Sammy and swaying on his feet. Dean stood next to him, looking over at the car, eyes filled with tears. "Can you hold him…? I can't…" Castiel trailed off and fell to one knee, holding Sammy close to his chest. Dean blinked the tears out of his eyes and kneeled with Cas. John followed, taking Sammy from his arms as Dean pulled Cas into himself when he began to fall towards the ground.

"What happened?" John asked urgently, using one arm to cradle Sammy and the other hand rubbed Cas' back.

"I've never done that before…" Castiel said, rather proudly despite his leaned position on Dean.

"Um… Good job, Cas! I guess." John said, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. Castiel's eyes started drooping closed. "Hey!" He shouted and Cas jerked awake. "We're not in the clear yet." He warned and Castiel nodded, straightening himself up.

"The demon must have had allies nearby and they followed me." Castiel said apologetically. "I need to eliminate them." Castiel said, standing up on shaky legs and walking a few feet before almost dropping like a rock. Dean caught him by the hood of his jacket and pulled him backwards before he could face plant in the dirt. He gathered him to his chest again.

"It doesn't look like you're eliminating anybody right now." John said dryly. "They probably think we went down with the Impala, we should be safe for a bit." They watched as the car carrying the demons took a U-turn and sped away.

"They were not very smart." Castiel said thankfully. "I need to sleep again." He said, frustrated. Jimmy consoled him with soft words, but Cas didn't listen, frustrated with his lack of power. His eyes started to slide shut when they all heard another car approaching. Everyone stiffened and John stood up quickly, shielding the two children kneeling on the ground and holding Sammy close. The truck, it turned out, stopped in front of them and parked. A man climbed out, a little older than John, with a healthy beard and a ball cap hiding his hair. He looked at them in concern.

"Damn, did you guys get caught up in all that?" He asked, and John frowned. He surveyed the car that was now in the ditch and whistled. "You're lucky." He said, eyeing them suspiciously. "Any of you hurt?" He said, looking at them critically.

"No." John said, looking over at Dean who shook his head. "Who are you?" John demanded, and the man gave him another suspicious look.

"Bobby Singer. You?" The man, Bobby, said gruffly.

"John Winchester." John replied, and Bobby nodded to the kids behind him. "These are my kids, Sammy, Dean and Castiel." John elaborated. He felt awkward referring to Castiel as his, but it wasn't far from the truth now. Bobby nodded and motioned to his truck.

"You got a place to go? I'll take ya' there." He offered. John thought about it, weighing his options, Castiel obviously wasn't in any shape to use his teleporting thing to get them somewhere safe, or even walk there. Dean was shaky and frightened and Sammy was a baby, not even a year old, obviously he wasn't going to help them much. But Bobby Singer could be dangerous, like the demons in the car that had gotten them into the situation.

"That'd be great, just the nearest motel." John said, trying to sound friendly. Bobby grunted to show he had heard and got into the driver's side. When they just stood there, he rolled down the window and shouted. "Ya' comin' or what?" John nodded.

"Yeah, give us a minute." John knelt down to Dean and Castiel. "I'll trade you." He joked, grabbing Castiel's shoulders to steady him and handing Sammy over to Dean. He clutched him tight and stood, knees a little wobbly. John picked Castiel up, who was looking up at him blearily. "Hey, since you're up… Kind of… Is this guy okay?" Castiel's eyes swiveled to the truck and then slid shut. "Hey! Cas! You can sleep later, this is important." Castiel yawned, looked surprised at himself and then blinked.

"He is fine." He said finally. "Mr. Winchester, I am very tired." He said and settled himself more comfortably in John's arms. John sighed and continued walking towards the truck, Dean close behind him.

They had all finally gotten in the car, Dean in the back with Sammy cradled in his arms and John in the front with Castiel leaning on him. Bobby seemed to notice something was up with Castiel and rose looked at John questioningly.

"He hurt or something?" He asked concern in his voice. "Do I need to stop at a hospital?"

"No, he's fine. Just a little shaken up." John lied easily, but Bobby didn't seem to buy it.

"Yeah." He said, before turning his attention to the road again. "I'll come back and tow your car to my scrap yard so you can come get it later." Bobby said and John didn't argue. He looked over to Castiel again. "I'm not a doctor, but I think you should get him looked at." Bobby said, nodding his head in Cas' direction. "That looks more like unconsciousness, not sleep." John sighed in reply, rubbing Castiel's back to coax him into wakefulness. He opened his eyes and looked up at John, eyes filled with a mixture of annoyance and confusion.

"Why…?" He asked, looking over at Bobby and then at Dean and Sammy in the back seat. "Tired." He said, nuzzling into John's side and closing his eyes. John patted his back and Castiel batted his hand away. "Tired, John Winchester." Castiel said sternly. Bobby raised an eyebrow at Castiel's use of John's full name.

"Cas, we have to tell Mr. Singer that you're alright." John said, continuing to pat Cas' back, ignoring Castiel's whines to be left alone. John looked over at Bobby. "He just does this. I don't get it either." He tried to say while chuckling lightly. "C'mon, Cas. It is not bedtime right now." Castiel's eyes snapped open and he looked at John angrily.

"Bedtime is stupid." Cas said angrily, Dean made a gasping noise in the backseat at Cas' use of language and John wanted to laugh so bad. "I am tired and I don't understand why people are so adamant to interrupt me when I sleep." He continued and then looked over a Bobby angrily. "Children get tired when they escape from cars that are falling into ditches." He said it seriously and in a tone like he was explaining this fact to an infant.

"Alright. I was just worryin' about ya' kid." Bobby said in a placating manner. Castiel merely huffed in reply and adjusted himself against John.

"I am going to sleep now." He said grumpily, and Bobby and John could both hear the unspoken 'and you better not disturb me.'

"Well ain't he a ray of sunshine." Bobby commented sourly. "What about the squirts back there? They pooped too?" Bobby asked, looking at Dean in the review mirror, Dean frowned at him and hugged a sleeping Sammy tighter. "Geeze." He said finally, returning his attention to the road. A very uncomfortable and awkward silence followed them all the way to the motel.

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><p><strong>TBC (Hope I did Bobby justice.)<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: I'm not going to lie, these next two chapters are going to be confusing and awkward for me because I'm finally going to get the plot to thicken a bit which is going to be confusing for both you and me. Bear with me, it gets better. Also, Castiel and Bobby's relationship is a little rocky at first, that gets better too. **

**Also, confusion about Bobby meeting them in Sioux City and not Sioux Falls, I know Bobby lives in Sioux Falls, I just didn't want them meeting there. **

**Thanks again for all the reviews and favorites and everything else! Enjoy!**

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><p>When they finally arrived at the first motel Bobby noticed, they unloaded and Bobby handed John a card with a phone number on it.<p>

"Call me tomorrow; I'll come pick you up." Bobby said gruffly, casting one last look at Castiel who was fast asleep in John's arms. He frowned and climbed back into his truck and drove off without another word.

Getting a motel room was fairly simple and maneuvering Cas into bed wasn't a difficult task. Getting Dean to sleep was a chore, however. "I'm worried about Cas!" Dean said anxiously and John sighed.

"He'll be fine." John assured. "Remember last time? He slept and when he woke up he was better." Dean seemed to ease up after that and John could at least get him to lie down, but he still watched Cas carefully. "Go to sleep, Dean." John shut off the light and went to get himself ready for bed. When he returned to the room, Dean was asleep along with Castiel and Sammy. He realized they didn't have any of their bags, no clothes, no weapons, nothing. He'd deal with that in the morning.

When they woke up the next morning, Dean was up with Castiel, who looked a little sleepy, but much better than the night previous. Sammy was leaning against Castiel, dozing still. John got up out of bed and walked over to them calmly.

"You alright, Cas?" He asked, and Castiel nodded, blinking slowly. "Still a little sleepy?" Castiel nodded again, rubbing his eyes and yawning. "We've got to go pick up the Impala today, hopefully she isn't wrecked too bad." John said and Dean frowned.

"You'll fix her, right?" Dean asked, big green eyes looked up pleadingly and John nodded.

"Yeah." He said, picking up Sammy and taking him into the small living area of the hotel. Sammy desperately needed a diaper, but he'd left everything in the car. "Hey, Dean! Do you think you can take Cas with you and go ask the front desk where the closest general store is?" John asked, he really hated asking, but Sammy was soggy and he didn't want to carry him around more than necessary.

Dean looked hesitant for a second and looked over at Cas, they stared at each other for a minute and then Dean nodded. "Okay." He said simply, jumping off the bed with Cas and then grabbing his hand. "Come on, Cas!" They were out the door in a matter of minutes.

Castiel walked hand in hand with Dean, it seemed like a strange custom, holding hands, but it was comforting as well. Jimmy was still fast asleep, and although walking with Dean was nice, he wanted to sleep some more too. They reached the front desk and were greeted by an overweight elderly woman in an obnoxious pink blouse. She smiled widely at them and Dean backed up slightly.

"Can I help you boys?" She asked cheerfully and Castiel answered.

"We need to find the nearest general store." Castiel said, and the lady grinned at them again, causing Castiel to back up minimally as well.

"There's one about a 5 minute walk away. Anything else I can help you with?" She asked cheerfully and both Dean and Castiel shook their heads. They turned and as soon as they were out of sight of the woman, they dashed across the hallway and back to their room.

"That woman was scary." Castiel reported to John, who was in the small bathroom with Sammy in the tub. "The closest store is five minutes away on foot." He said, and John nodded.

"Okay, can you watch Sammy for me while I go pick up some stuff?" John asked, and both Dean and Castiel nodded, replacing John in his spot on the bathroom floor. "I'll be right back!" John shouted and closed the motel room door.

Dean looked down at Sammy who was having a great time watching bubbles float around in the tub, splashing at them occasionally and making them pop. Dean reached in and splashed Sammy, who giggled. Castiel looked confused and Dean splashed him as well. He spluttered slightly and looked down at his, now wet, shirt.

"Why did you do that, Dean?" Castiel asked, slightly hurt. Dean laughed.

"I splashed you!" Dean told Castiel with a chuckle. Castiel's brow furrowed.

"I can see that. Why?" Castiel asked, and Dean looked thoughtful for a moment. Sammy was now splashing water everywhere, chucking bubbles from the water, allowing them to float around freely.

"It's fun." Dean told him and then proceeded to splash Castiel again.

"Oh." Castiel smiled and splashed Dean back. Dean cupped his hands and dipped them in the water, flinging the liquid he had collected at Castiel and Sammy. They both got soaked, well, Sammy was already soaked. Castiel looked over at Sammy with some form of silent communication and then proceeded to attack Dean with large splashed and handfuls of water. Sammy was uncoordinated and managed to get only himself and Castiel's arms wet though.

By the time John got back to the motel all of them had effectively soaked themselves and their clothes. John sighed, caught between laughing and getting angry at them for soiling the only pair of clothes they had at that moment. He settled for simply saying "I'm going to call Bobby Singer." And leaving to go use the phone. He dialed the number in slowly, and then hit the call button.

It only rang a couple of times before Bobby picked up with a gruff "Hello?"

"Is this Bobby Singer?" John asked, attempting to match the gruffness. He got a grunt of conformation.

"What do ya' want?" He asked grumpily.

"This is John Winchester." John said into the phone in a business-like tone. "We met yesterday."

"I know! I'm not so old that I don't remember what I did last night!" Bobby said angrily into the phone. "How's that kid?" John paused, casting a look to Castiel and Dean who were still in the bathroom, the door slightly ajar.

"He's fine." John said, slightly annoyed. "In fact, he just soaked himself and Dean." He sighed, and he heard Bobby grunt on the other side of the line.

"You need clothes?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah, can you bring some with you? They're in the blue bag." John said, looking over to Dean and Castiel. "I need two shirts and two pairs of pants from the kid sized stuff." John said.

"Alright, I should be there in about an hour." Bobby said, and hung up. John went to the bathroom and grabbed a several towels off the counter. He threw one of them at Cas, one at Dean and used the last one on Sammy, grabbing him out of the tub and wrapping him up like a burrito. Cas and Dean undressed and then started drying themselves off, finally taking the time to try and dry Cas' messy hair which ended up turning into a big tangled mess. Dean laughed loudly at the crazier than normal state of Cas' hair and in return Cas threw the towel over Dean's hair and rubbed it back in forth. Dean's hair stood up on end when the big towel was removed from it and he looked at himself in the mirror and both he and Cas started laughing at each other. Sammy heard the laughter and joined in with little bubbly giggles.

"Come on, guys. Bobby Singer's bringing clothes and we have to hang the wet ones up." John told them and they both complied, helping spread out their clothes so John could sling them over the shower curtain holder. After Sammy had a new diaper, John dressed him in the previous day's clothes, which were his pajamas and Dean and Cas were left standing around in their underwear, they didn't seem to mind much, walking over to the couch to plop down and watch cartoons. John set Sammy with them, and went to the window to watch for Bobby.

"I don't understand. Why is the mouse able to lift such heavy things?" Castiel's voice cut over the sounds of the T.V. Dean looked over to him and shrugged, Castiel sat there with his brow furrowed. "Shouldn't that cat be dead or unconscious?" Dean shrugged again. "Why does it want the mouse so badly?" Dean shushed him.

"It's sposed' to be funny, Cas." He said, and Castiel looked at him, confused, but was silent afterwards. Until the next cartoon came on and he began asking questions again.

"Why can the animals talk? They lost that ability after the flood." Castiel said and Dean just gave him a look. Castiel shut up after that. They didn't get to finish the cartoon anyway, because Bobby pulled up into the motel parking lot. John went out to meet him, he opened the door and when Bobby saw him, he frowned.

He walked up to him and handed him the clothes. "Here." He said, and John grabbed them, quickly retreating inside, Bobby took the liberty of following him in and saw the three little ones from yesterday all snuggled up on the couch. John handed the one with bed head, Castiel, his pair of clothes and the other one, his. Dean looked up at Bobby and grabbed Castiel's hand, leading him into the bathroom. Once the door shut, Bobby looked to John. "Anything you wanna tell me?" Bobby asked, John looked startled for a moment.

"Cas is fine." He tried, but Bobby shook his head.

"I know the little bed-headed runt's okay, I'd be worried if he were still unconscious." Bobby said, impatiently. "I found somethin' while lookin' for the bag with your clothes in it." He waited for John to catch on.

"Uh…" John stuttered, suspecting what Bobby meant, but refusing to believe it.

"Lots of weapons." Bobby said, crossing his arms.

"Oh! I used to be military and-" Bobby cut him off with a frustrated grunt.

"You expect me to fall for that? I wasn't born yesterday!" Bobby said angrily.

"No really! I just could never get myself to stop carrying weapons around and…" John trailed off, floundering for more excuses.

"I guess they use crucifixes in the military then." At John's shocked look, he continued. " Yeah, I found that. And those guns are loaded with rock salt. Don't lie to me." Bobby said, and John wanted nothing more than to grab the kids and run for the door.

"Look, I don't know what you're getting at but-"

"Like hell, you don't know!" Bobby shouted angrily, drawing the kids from the bathroom. Castiel peeked his head out to peer cautiously at Bobby. John waved them off to go back in.

"John Winchester, you're a hunter." Bobby stated plainly. "A stupid, unprepared, idjit hunter, but a hunter." He said, and John gave him a nasty glare in return. "Don't look at me like that. You don't even have a silver knife."

"Why would I need one?" John asked, clearly confused.

"God! Who taught you how to hunt?" Bobby asked, exasperated. John shrugged.

"Missouri, I guess." Bobby looked about ready to have a conniption.

"Missouri? They told you that all you needed was a crucifix and some rock salt and you were covered?" Bobby asked, and John backed away slightly.

"I kind of came up with the crucifix idea on my own." Bobby palmed his face. The kids exited the bathroom fully dressed and Cas had what looked like a comb stuck in his hair.

"Dean said there were knots in my hair and we needed to use a comb to get them out." Castiel said by way of explanation and John fought the urge to laugh. He walked over and helped Cas detangle the comb from his hair and tried to run his fingers through it to set it right. It seemed to only make it worse and it stood out at more drastic angles than before. Dean giggled slightly before noticing Bobby was in the room and fell silent.

"You're all a bunch of idjits." Bobby said with a sigh.

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><p><strong>To be continued (I've pre-written the next chapter and I hate it, but its going to have to suffice.)<strong>


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: The last episode, guys... I can't even begin to decipher how it made me feel. I felt guilty for laughing at Cas. I didn't like that one angel, she was very whiny, anyway... So here is the new chapter, it was somehow very awkward to write, but the next chapter is much better. **

**In other news, my friend said I am mentally connected to Cas. And I regret absolutely nothing.**

**Please enjoy this new chapter and give me some feedback!  
><strong>

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><p>They were all packed in Bobby's truck on their way to Bobby's "Scrap Yard" in Sioux Falls. Castiel was sat on the floor in the back with Dean this time because Bobby didn't want him in the front. "At night it's not crowded around here, but during the day people are crazy drivers. Hell, they're crazy in general." He said, and John deemed it safer in the back than in the front, even if he didn't have a seatbelt. When they pulled down the road to Bobby's house, John immediately saw a large fence surrounding his property. There were signs posted all around it that said things like "No trespassing", "Beware of Dog" and "No children" which had John raising an eyebrow at Bobby, who huffed.<p>

"For safety reasons. I don't want any snot nose kids runnin' around and getting stuck under the cars and whatever else they do." Bobby said. "Don't think you're an exception, you better keep those rascals under control." Bobby said, motioning to the three little ones in the back.

"They behave just fine. You won't have any trouble with them." John assured Bobby, and he grunted affirmation. They pulled in past the gates, through row after row of stacked, broken down cars until they finally reached the dirt driveway in front of what John assumed to be Bobby's house. Once they got out, he motioned for them to follow around back.

"The car's in the garage." He explained. They followed him and he opened the garage door to show the Impala with a slightly damaged fender, a broken brake light, a popped tire, and all the windows were either cracked or smashed in. John could have cried. "She's not too bad as far engine damage goes, but she may need a realignment. She definitely needs the windows replaced and that brake light fixed and it's up to you if you want that fender fixed." Bobby explained, pointing to the problem areas of the car uselessly. John was pretty much speechless.

"H-how much is it gonna cost to get her fixed?" John asked. He could do maintenance on the Impala, he could fix a flat tire, but he needed new parts to fix this. Bobby could probably get them, but for a price. They had fake credit cards and if Bobby knew he was a hunter, he probably wouldn't accept them.

"Get the rascals inside and out of the way and we'll talk about that." Bobby said, leading John into the house from the garage. John and the children were met with a very messy looking house, cluttered with bottle of liquor stacked on piles of books set on the floor. Shelves were jammed full of even more books and there were odd herbs and bones strewn across a desk set in the corner of the room. John glanced at Bobby and Bobby shot John a frustrated look. "God! Quit giving me those looks!" Castiel looked angrily at Bobby for a minute and then turned to Dean. Bobby cleared the junk on his desk away and pointed to a room adjoined to the one they were standing in. "Send them in the library, there's not anything dangerous in there, just books." Bobby said, and John nodded, leading them to the room.

Both John and Castiel surveyed the room. Castiel was looking for anything supernaturally dangerous, and John was looking for anything physically dangerous. After they both had found the room was safe, save for a stack of books that was taller than John and leaning to the left slightly. John left them in the room, giving Castiel instructions to get Dean and Sammy out if anything happened. He then handed Sammy to Dean and headed back out. Luckily for Castiel, the room didn't have any doors, so if he was quiet he could hear what Bobby and John were saying. Sadly, Dean and Sammy were not interested in being quiet, so Dean proceeded to tickle Sammy and make him laugh loudly, while Castiel sat as close as he could to the door without looking suspicious so he could eavesdrop.

"So, we're going to talk about my car?" John asked, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at Bobby.

"You're a hunter." Bobby stated, and John nodded. "I'll fix your car if you let me teach you the basics." Bobby said. John gave him a surprised look.

"You want to teach me?" John asked.

"I ain't doin' it for you." Bobby said bitterly. "You've got kids with you. I'm not gonna let them get killed because you're unprepared." Bobby said seriously. John nodded. "I'd rather you not have kids with you at all..." Bobby muttered, but John didn't catch it.

"Alright. Teach me." John said squaring himself as if Bobby was going to start teaching him kung-fu right that second. Bobby rolled his eyes and mumbled idget under his breath.

"It's not like I can poof the knowledge into ya!" Bobby said exasperatedly and John deflated. "Wait here." Bobby went into the library, almost tripping over Castiel. He glared down at the kid, who stared up at him, feigning innocence. "Alright, ya idget." He picked him up and set him down next to Sammy and Dean. "Stay out the doorways, I can tell what yer doin." Castiel frowned at Bobby, who frowned back. This went on for several awkward seconds before Bobby gave up and got what he came in the room for. He grabbed an old dusty book off the shelf and marched through the room. He looked down to see Castiel had stuck his tongue out at him at Dean's urging and Bobby glared at him. Dean glared back, and Castiel looked at him in distrust.

"What is that book?" Castiel asked sternly.

"It's for your daddy, and not you." Bobby said gruffly.

"You will tell me what is in that book." Castiel ordered, Bobby just gave him an incredulous look.

"Or what, squirt?" Bobby said, and Castiel crossed his arms and fumed at him, apparently thinking of a good threat. Bobby ignored him and walked out with the book under his arm, John was standing close to the doorway watching the exchange. "Why's he so grumpy?" Bobby asked pointing back at Castiel with his thumb. John shrugged.

"He's usually not." John said. "He's really nice to Dean and Sammy." Bobby huffed and shoved the book into John's arms. "What's this?"

"It's a book, ya idget." Bobby said helpfully. "It's got information on the most common monsters and spirits around this area." He explained, and John opened it and flipped through pages of them. "Most of the ones in this part of the country can be found in Native American lore. That's pretty common around the country, actually." Bobby said, thinking for a moment. "Spirits and poltergeists are pretty common too. You'll also get common monsters from other countries as well, because they move over with immigrant groups somehow." He stopped when John gave him a look like he was insane, not an uncommon expression, but John was a hunter. He should be used to this stuff. "What?"

"There are people who write books on this stuff?" John asked incredulously. "People _study_ this stuff?" Bobby sighed and nodded.

"There are more hunters than you think, John. If there weren't there'd be a lot more Supernatural related deaths." Bobby took a breath and continued. " That's what being a hunter is, saving people from things that the law can't." Bobby explained, and John furrowed his brow.

"I'm only trying to avenge my wife." John said and something like understanding flashed in Bobby's eyes.

"What happened?" Bobby asked, but John was interrupted by a loud tumbling noise from the library. They both rushed in to see that Castiel had pretty much thrown himself over Dean and Sammy, behind him was a toppled pile of books. "What's going on?" Bobby shouted, and both Dean and Sammy looked incredibly guilty. Castiel stood up.

"Dean wanted a book from the middle of the pile." Castiel explained, turning to grab Dean's hand and help him up. Sammy who had been slightly dazed by the whole thing started wailing loudly. Castiel grabbed him and started rocking him awkwardly, he quieted almost immediately.

"You don't play Jenga in the library!" Bobby said, looking directly at Dean. Dean frowned at him and started to hide behind Castiel. Castiel tilted his head.

"What is Jenga?" Castiel asked. John was on the floor checking all of them over for injuries.

"It's a game. You know? You stack these wooden blocks up and then try to pull them out and not knock the stack down." Bobby explained, while John offered to take Sammy and Castiel handed him over. Castiel looked towards the pile and then back up at Bobby.

"Those were books, not wooden blocks, so we couldn't have played Jenga." Castiel explained. Bobby gave him an angry glare, which Castiel met with his own. The first couple times, Bobby had just let it go, but now it was starting to get on his nerves.

"Don't glare at me, kid!" Bobby shouted at him and Castiel flinched harshly, stepping back. Dean looked at him nervously, placing hands on his shoulders and John stiffened. Bobby had obviously done something wrong.

_Sorry!_ Jimmy said from within Castiel's grace, and Castiel whispered an "it's alright" under his breath.

Bobby glanced around the room guiltily. John was in Castiel's face, scrutinizing him. "You alright? You there? You're alright, right?" He asked, and Castiel nodded.

"It's fine." Castiel said, and Bobby looked confused.

"Did I do something wrong?" Bobby asked harshly, but in a noticeably gentler voice. Both John and Castiel shook their head and Dean had clasped Castiel's hand in his own.

"Cas doesn't react well to yelling." John explained as best he could. Bobby huffed.

"Well. Sorry, kid." Bobby said, exiting the room. "John, come on, we'll clean up the books later." John handed Sammy to Castiel and looked to Dean.

"Try not to knock anything else over, okay?" John requested, and Dean nodded. He looked over at Castiel next. "Try not to have an… episode, something tells me Bobby wouldn't be too happy if he found out you weren't human." John whispered this as quietly as he could and Castiel nodded.

"I will do my best, but Jimmy's impulses make it difficult to control my reactions." Castiel said and John was beginning to regret his decision to accept Bobby's help.

"Just do your best." John said, and Castiel nodded seriously. He stood up and went to join Bobby who was waiting impatiently and giving John suspicious glances. The both gathered around the desk and Bobby looked at him seriously.

"Are you sure that kid's alright?" Bobby asked, looking John square in the eye. John sighed.

"He's fine. He's not technically mine; I think the people who had him might've abused him. I'm not sure." John lied. He'd have to discuss a cover story with Cas later. "He just has issues when people raise their voices." Bobby nodded, arms crossed.

"Alright." Bobby said. He looked like he wanted to say more, but didn't, motioning to the book in John's hands. "Read that, it's got stuff on every kind of common monster there is around here." With that he left to the garage and John sat heavily in a chair. The cover was warn and wordless, and as he turned the first page he saw it was yellowing with age. It was handwritten in English and on some pages there was writing John couldn't decipher, as well as a fair amount of what looked like Latin. He looked up to see Castiel peeking at him from the library.

"You heard what I told him, right?" John asked, and Castiel nodded.

"Jimmy's parents are not abusive, they merely yell a lot." Castiel said. "They didn't mean it, but it affected Jimmy severely. He associates anger and yelling with the need to flee. It's an automatic response." Castiel explained seriously.

John nodded in understanding. "Kid's got issues." He said seriously. "We've all got issues." John said under his breath. Castiel returned to the library and the house fell silent except for Sammy's small happy noises and Bobby tinkering on the Impala.

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><p><strong>TBC (I hope this chapter wasn't as painful to read as it was to write.)<strong>


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Sorry for the late update, guys. Finals were kicking my butt, so I needed to take a break from fanfiction for a bit. I'm back though, and if everything goes well, I'll be updating regularly again. **

**I'm also unsure of the correct spelling for "Idgit", so I'll probably use the spelling with an I instead of an E because it feels more comfortable. **

**Thank you guys so much for reading and please enjoy this new chapter!**

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><p>It took Bobby three days to repair the Impala, he would have gotten it done sooner, but he had his job as a hunter and as a scrapper to tend to. It took him a week to train John so that he felt comfortable bringing him on a hunt. The whole time Dean, Sam and Castiel slept in one of Bobby's vacant rooms and played in the library. When both John and Bobby were absent from the house, Castiel was reading material out of Bobby's vast collection of books. He learned much about supernatural creatures and how humans killed them. Many were killed with fire, it seemed, or knives made of different metals, some you only needed salt to be rid of and others required complex rituals. Castiel memorized everything.<p>

When Castiel wasn't reading, he was attempting to cheer Dean up. He had becoming increasingly depressed the more John was absent from them. Even if John was just reading, he would shoo Dean and Sammy away when they wanted attention. He and Castiel had more than a few stern talks about this. "We'll have time after I kill the thing that killed my wife." He would tell Castiel. Castiel seriously doubted it.

As a consolation, Bobby had begun spending more time with the kids while John was studying or completing a task for him. That time was interrupted by frequent visits to a constantly ringing phone or answering John's questions, but he always returned and apologized for the interruption. Bobby learned that Castiel was extremely loyal, responsible and smart for a child his age, Dean was too. All things considered, it was going well. Until it was announced Saturday evening that John and Bobby were going on a hunt. Bobby and John had agreed that Castiel could sufficiently take care of Sammy and Dean after they'd taught him to cook and had laid down some ground rules. Dean had retreated to his, Castiel's and Sammy's shared room, locked the door and had not come out. That's where Castiel found himself, sitting outside the door listening to hushed sobs on the other side of the door, patiently waiting for Dean to come out while John and Bobby warded the house. Castiel gave up and headed downstairs after Dean had cried himself to sleep. He approached John Winchester.

"We need to talk." Castiel said seriously. "You're son-" John cut him off.

"Yeah. Okay. While we're gone, don't answer the door, don't break the salt lines, be sure to keep Sammy clean and remember breakfast in the morning, lunch at noon and dinner in the evening. Understand?" John asked, looking at Castiel expectantly.

"I understand. But John, we need to speak about-" He was cut off yet again by John rattling off orders.

"Don't let Dean skip his bath, you know how smelly he gets without one, and don't leave Sammy alone in the tub, and also-" Castiel was the one to interrupt this time.

"JOHN WINCHESTER." Castiel said sternly, all the force of Heaven behind his voice. "I know how to take care of the children, obviously, you do not." John gave him a confused look. "You have been ignoring your children all week, and you are oblivious to the fact that Dean needs you." Castiel said, a little calmer this time.

"Dean doesn't need me, he's got you. It'll only be for three days, tops. He can handle three days." John tried reasoning with Castiel, which only made Castiel angrier.

"He has been without you for a week already!" He shouted, Jimmy retreated in the face of Castiel's anger. "Quit being ignorant and self-centered and take care of your children!" Castiel demanded, clenching his fist and stomping a foot. "Do the job that Bobby Singer has been doing for you."

"I am not self-centered, Castiel!" John said, attempting to match Castiel's tone. It was obvious the words were affecting him though. "I'm doing this for my wife! So Dean doesn't grow up knowing that the thing that killed his mother got away!"

"Dean doesn't need that!" Castiel shouted at him and John looked at him angrily.

"How would you know? You're not even human!" John yelled, and Castiel looked at him defiantly. "You don't know anything about what Dean needs!"

"Perhaps, because I am not human, I can see what Dean needs better than you can." Castiel said. "Because I'm not so blinded by the need to avenge someone that's dead, that I overlook the needs of someone who is alive." John didn't have anything to say to that, so he huffed and headed upstairs to where Dean was. Castiel walked to the library to care for Sammy. A new kind of tension permeated the house when Bobby returned from the garage, wiping some form of blood from his hands and peering about the house.

John had just gotten a stern talking to from a six year old and he felt mortified that he need Cas to make him see what he'd done wrong. He knocked on Dean's door gently.

"Dean? Hey, buddy, wanna come out for a second?" John asked gently, keeping his ear pressed to the door. There was no reply, so John knocked a little harder. "Dean, come on, we need to talk." John pleaded. He heard shuffling on the other side of the door, and then the click of the door being unlocked. He took it as an invitation and walked inside. Dean was sat on the bed, curled up in the comforter and his eyes were red and puffy from crying, John sat next to him, looking down at his lap, sighing. "Look, I'm sorry I've been ignoring you this past week. I just…" He paused, searching for words to say. "I've got to do this. I just want to make sure you know that I don't mean it when I ignore you. I want you to know that I love you and I want to make sure you guys have a good life, but it's hard without your mother." Dean snuggled himself up against John pulling the comforter with him. They sat there for a long time in a comfortable silence, until Dean fell asleep.

Meanwhile, Bobby and Castiel were sat in the library, playing with Sammy. Bobby was doing most of the playing, while Castiel observed because he didn't know how to play. He would pick up, rock and hold Sammy, but he didn't know how to play "baby games", he didn't even know how to play the games that were common for his own age. Dean had just recently taught him hide and seek and Bobby was currently explaining the mechanics of "make-believe" while he bounced Sammy on his knee.

"It's not actually there, Cas, you imagine it there." Bobby explained, motioning to a corner of the room that supposedly held an imaginary space ship. Castiel tilted his head at the space.

"I still don't see it." He said sadly. "I'm not good at this game." Bobby sighed.

"If I'm good at this, you're good at this." Bobby said and Castiel frowned in frustration, closing his eyes and furrowing his brow, a look of determination painting his features. After a while his face turned a reddish color and he opened his eyes suddenly, letting out a breath. "Idgit…" Bobby muttered under his breath.

"The spaceship is still not there." Castiel said dejectedly.

"Make-believe ain't the only game kids play." Bobby said, trying to encourage Cas. "How about I teach you how to play with Sammy?" Bobby asked, reaching a hand out to pat him on the shoulder. Castiel turned around, a small smile on his face.

"Yes! I would like that, very much." Castiel said, so Bobby plopped Sammy down on a mat on the floor and kneeled down with Castiel.

"Cas, babies need lots of exercise and every game you play with them teaches them something." He grabbed Sammy's hands and helped him sit up. "See? When you do this, it teaches him how to sit up by himself and makes him stronger." Sammy smiled at Bobby, flashing a wide grin. "You gotta be close to them too. They can't see you if you're too far away." Bobby said, getting his face a little closer to Sammy's as an example, Sammy's eyes took a moment to adjust to the new proximity but once they focused he smiled widely.

"You know a lot about babies." Castiel commented, and Bobby sighed.

"Had to, before…" Bobby trailed off, a note of sadness in his voice. "Anyhow, you're gonna be responsible for him, so I've gotta make sure you know what you're doing." Castiel nodded and sat on the floor next to Bobby for another lesson.

Dean seemed to be okay for the afternoon, he came out of his room around dinner time. He drew pictures with Castiel and helped keep Sammy from eating the crayons. When it was dinner time he talked a little bit to Bobby, which was a great achievement and went to bed without a fuss. The next day, however, when it was time for Bobby and John to leave, he hid in his room again. Castiel had left him alone for the majority of the morning, but when it came time for lunch, he was determined to get Dean to come eat with them.

"You have to come out and eat with us, Dean. It's lunch time!" Castiel reasoned. "You have to eat at lunch time, your father said so!" Dean just made a loud humphing noise before hiding under the covers. "The Lord gave you words for a reason, Dean." Castiel said, walking over to him and attempting to pull the covers away while Dean rolled himself up in them more. "Sammy will be upset if he doesn't get lunch because you are stubborn." Dean paused and looked at him sadly.

"If I don't eat lunch you won't feed Sammy?" Dean asked Castiel mournfully. "That's not fair!" Castiel huffed at him.

"Nobody eats if you don't eat because I'll be up here with you until you come downstairs and eat." Castiel explained.

"Caaaaaaaaaas!" Dean whined. "I don' wanna." Dean kicked his feet, preparing for a tantrum.

"Dean, please." Castiel pleaded. "My job is to protect you and to keep you healthy and safe and you are making my job very hard."

"That's not you're job, that's daddy's job." Dean said, and Castiel couldn't agree more.

"Ordinarily, yes, but he has another job to do right now." Castiel said. When Dean didn't reply, he sighed and sat next to him on the bed. "I've never been a big brother before." Castiel said, rubbing his fingers through Dean's hair. He'd learnt it as a gesture of comfort and found it helpful in comforting himself as well. "But I will attempt to be one, if you allow me." Dean scooted over to him and turned his head into Castiel's shirt.

"Nuh-uh." He said simply, and Castiel tilted his head at him, confused. Dean sighed in frustration. "That's my job. Sammy and you, you're the little brothers." Dean said, snuggling closer.

"I'm older." Castiel mentioned to himself. Dean made a frustrated noise.

"I was here first." Dean argued. It wasn't a very sound argument, but Castiel let it pass.

"Can we go down and eat now?" Castiel asked, rubbing Dean's head. "You can feed Sammy." He felt Dean nod into his shirt and together they go up off the bed and headed downstairs.

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><p><strong>TBC (Please remember to leave a review!)<strong>


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Here's another chapter. I was busy during the weekend and earlier this week, so I couldn't post, but I can now! Anyways, thank you for reviewing, adding this to you favorites and whatever else you can do, it's greatly appreciated!**

**Fanfiction has suddenly gotten very complicated, so please excuse me while I pretend not to understand technology and ignore all the updates. **

**Please enjoy this chapter!**

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><p>Bobby and John had been driving in a long uncomfortable silence for half the day. John didn't really notice, he was in constant worry for Dean and Sam, and partly Cas too. Constant questions, did Cas remember lunch? Did Dean's mood ever improve? Crap! He forgot to teach Cas how to change a diaper!<p>

"Bobby! We need to stop!" John said in sudden alarm, Bobby immediately slammed on the breaks and looked over to him, annoyed. "We need to find a phone. Do you have one?" John asked.

"Why? If you needed to be in constant contact with the kids, you should have thought about that before you left!" Bobby berated, John pinched his noise.

"I forgot to teach Cas how to change a diaper!" John shouted, and Bobby sighed.

"He knows how. I taught him." Bobby said, and John deflated in relief.

"Really?" Bobby nodded. "When?" John asked, completely confused.

"You were studying or somethin', Sammy was ripe, so I changed him and taught Cas how." Bobby said. John seemed relieved. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like to get to before sundown." Bobby said sarcastically, pulling out of the temporary parking spot and driving onto the road.

They were on the road another hour in that uncomfortable silence when Bobby broke it. "Cas is smart." He mentioned casually. "Talks like an eighty year old, rather than a kid." John eyed Bobby suspiciously.

"I don't know. He was like that when we found him." John dismissed. Bobby gave John a quizzical look.

"Found him?" Bobby asked. John flinched, bad choice of words.

"Yeah, uh…. His parents abandoned him at a gas station." John said, rubbing the back of his neck. Bobby was giving him a strange look. "He's not dangerous or anything! He isn't possessed!" John said, and Bobby sighed.

"I know that, he's been drinking holy water and I've been making him eat with silver utensils." Bobby said, and John looked at him like he was insane. "What? I've gotta make sure I'm safe too." Bobby said defensively.

"I understand." John said, sighing internally in relief. "But seriously, Cas is just smart. He's human." John insisted this several times before Bobby interrupted him.

"John, the more you tell me that, the more suspicious I get." Bobby said and John was silent the rest of the trip.

Meanwhile Sammy would not stop crying. After Cas had finished feeding him his lunch Sammy became very fussy, and neither Castiel or Dean could figure out why. They both tried holding him, rocking him, that didn't work. Dean tried singing to him in English, Cas tried singing him an Enochian hymn, that didn't work either. They checked his diaper, tried getting him to sleep, fed him some warm milk, none of it was working. They gave up, sat Sammy on the couch and sat on the floor covering their ears.

"He's so insistent." Cas yelled over Sammy's hysterical wails. "What is wrong?" Dean shrugged and shook his head.

"Maybe he wants Daddy!" Dean said, and Cas sighed.

"Why did John have to leave?" Castiel asked his Father.

_Maybe you could just stick him in his room while he cries, and take him out when he calms down. _Jimmy suggested. _He might not be able to nap cause' it's too loud._

"It's been practically silent in the house since John and Bobby left." Castiel said. "How could he not be able to sleep for that reason?"

_Maybe he has a tummy ache? _ Jimmy suggested.

"I would've been able to fix it." Castiel said. Dean was looking at him like he was insane, but Castiel was beyond caring. The frustration caused by Sammy's persistent cries was driving him to the brink of his patience.

"Who're you talking to?" Dean asked, giving Castiel a confused and concerned look.

"Myself." Castiel said shortly. Dean frowned and pouted.

"You're a bad liar, Cas." Dean said, crossing his arms. Castiel huffed in frustration.

"It's difficult to explain." Castiel said.

"Are you talking to the one that came out when you went away?" Dean asked, curiosity winning over his concern.

"Yes." Castiel replied. Sammy had finally gone from loud wailing to small snorts and sniffles.

"What's his name?" Dean asked, staring intently at Castiel, like he could see the other person inside of him if he looked hard enough. "Does he have name?" Dean suddenly looked panicked. "Is he a boy?" The prospect of Jimmy being anything but a boy seemed to greatly distress Dean.

"His name's Jimmy. He is a boy." Castiel said, chuckling slightly. "He says 'hello', and also 'thank you'." Dean nodded, but didn't say anything else. He was suddenly very shy. Castiel looked up at Sammy who had quieted down.

"Are you done?" Dean asked, looking at Sammy critically. "Cause if you're not, I'll throw you in the trash." Castiel looked horrified.

"Dean, you shouldn't throw your brother in the trash!" Castiel said sternly.

"I wasn't gonna really throw him away, stupid!" Dean shouted back and Cas frowned.

"You shouldn't threaten." Cas said, crossing his arms. "Don't call me stupid."

Dean huffed and crossed his arms as well, glaring at Cas. "What else am I 'sposed to call you?" He asked indignantly.

"Cas will suffice, thank you." Castiel said, and the tension in the room built a little bit. "I'm going to go find a book." He said. "Try not to dispose of Sammy while I'm gone." Castiel said, trying his hand at sarcasm. Dean stuck out his tongue and blew a raspberry at him.

Castiel didn't actually go to get a book, he just needed a reason to avoid conflict with Dean. Dean was already upset with his father; Castiel didn't need to add himself to the list. He made his way upstairs and into the room he shared with Dean and Sam. He sat on the bed for a few minutes, then got up, wondered around the room, went into the bathroom located next door and then back out into the hallway to be met by Dean.

"Cas?" Dean asked, fidgeting with his hands, Castiel acknowledged him with a nod.

"Yes, Dean?" He asked, Dean looked down at his feet and muttered something at the floor. Castiel couldn't make it out. "Um… What?" Castiel asked, and Dean looked up at him.

"I'm sorry I called you stupid!" He shouted and Castiel blinked, not expecting the apology.

"… You're forgiven." Castiel said softly, and Dean sighed.

"You just don't know a lot and it makes me mad." Dean said. Castiel wasn't sure if he should apologize or not. "Not mad at you." Dean added, he then turned and walked down the stairs and Castiel followed. The sight that greeted them immediately made Dean and Castiel jump into action. A strange man was sitting on the couch cradling Sammy, and it took Castiel all of three seconds to recognize him. He let out a harsh breath.

"Loki! Don't do that. I almost killed you." Castiel said, and Loki smirked.

"As if you could." He turned his attention to Sammy. "This little guy's adorable!" He said, tickling Sammy's tummy and making him giggle. Dean had, of course, gone back to being shy after he realized Loki wasn't a threat. "Hey, Dean-o, how ya doin'?" Loki asked cheerily, setting Sammy on his knee. "Why don't you come sit with Uncle Loki?" He patted the seat next to him invitingly and Dean shook his head at him before going to sit in the opposite chair. Loki snorted before shouting "No fun!" at Dean.

"Please don't harass Dean, Loki." Castiel said and Loki laughed. "Why are you here?"

"Geeze, Cas, don't be inviting or anything." Loki said, and Castiel furrowed his brow.

"I merely…"

"Don't sweat it. I heard this one wailing and figured you could use some help." He said.

"I apologize. I didn't realize he was being so loud." Castiel said, moving to sit in the chair next to Dean.

"Honestly, I think everyone in Asgard could hear him." Loki joked and Castiel looked concerned.

"They aren't coming here too, are they?" Castiel asked fearfully and Loki broke out into laughter, shaking his head.

"Nope, they've got better things to do than come investigate a crying baby." Loki laughed and Castiel sighed.

"What's an ass guard?" Dean asked, from his chair and Loki dissolved into laughter.

"It's where Loki lives." Castiel explained, and Dean nodded. He looked over to Loki seriously.

"Are you a good guy?" He asked, and Loki shrugged lightly.

"I'm on your side, I guess." He said casually and Dean looked confused.

"Is my side the good side?" Dean asked, and Castiel's brow furrowed.

"Sides of what?" He asked.

Loki let out a frustrated huff that ruffled Sammy's hair. "They're like teams, I guess. And we're all a team." Loki said, smiling down at the baby in his lap.

"What about Daddy?" Dean asked from his chair and Castiel nodded. Loki looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Nah." He said decisively. Dean looked sad. "Don't give me that look. You're dad's an adult, so he's on an adult team of his own."

"You are an adult." Castiel said.

"Not at heart." Loki said, giving Cas a wink. "That's what matters. Plus I'm a god, my age doesn't count." Castiel frowned.

"This is very confusing business." Castiel said thoughtfully, brow furrowed. Dean nodded his head in agreement a similar look upon his face.

"Can I be Batman?" Dean blurted randomly. "Sammy can be Robin! And Loki can be the butler guy! Cas can be… Cas can be catwoman!" Castiel gave Dean an unpleased look.

"I am not a cat." Castiel said. "Or a woman."

"And do I look like a butler to you?" Loki added. Sammy chimed in with a few baby garbles.

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><p><strong>TBC <strong>


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: I'm sorry for the lack of updates, I've not slept well in a few weeks and it impacts my ability to write. I've already got the next chapter written though so next update should go smoothly. **

**Thank you all so much for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter! Enjoy!**

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><p>Loki did, in fact, end up being Dean and Sam's butler, along with Castiel. Loki spent the entire evening playing with Sammy and producing various types of candies and snacks upon request. Currently, Dean was teaching Castiel to play tag amongst the cars while Loki sat on the porch with Sammy.<p>

"Careful, guys! Don't trip and fall!" He shouted as Dean almost face planted into the dirt. Castiel was running ahead of him, frequently turning to see if Dean was following. Dean eventually caught up to him and tagged him. He spun on his toes, kicking up dirt, and ran the other way. Castiel was close on his heels, grinning. It was the most Loki had ever seen Castiel smile, and it made him smile too.

Eventually the inevitable happened, as Castiel disappeared behind a car, Dean close behind. Loki heard the tell-tale _thump _and slide of a small body falling to the earth and Dean's cry of "Cas!" Obviously Castiel was the one to have taken the spill, which means Loki probably wouldn't even need to find band aids. He got up out of his chair with Sam on his hip to go survey the damage.

Castiel was getting up out of the dirt, Dean hovering around him like a mother hen. "Are you okay, Cas?" He asked. Before Castiel could answer, Dean grabbed his hands and pulled them towards him, palms up. He looked critically at the blood, making a serious face. "We need to get you a band aid! You've got boo boos!" Dean said and Castiel tilted his head.

"Boo boos?" Castiel questioned, surveying his hands. Dean looked down at Cas' knees to see them scraped up as well, scabs peeking through the newly torn holes.

"You've got them all over!" Dean said, gently grabbing Castiel's hand and pulling him towards Loki. "Loki! We need band aids! Cas' got boo boos!"

"Really? Cas, you need band aids?" Loki asked. Castiel tilted his head again, looking at the hand Dean wasn't holding and watching the scratches scab over and heal gradually, albeit quicker than a human.

"What is a band aid?" Castiel asked and Dean looked at him in horror.

"You don't know what a band aid is?" Dean asked in disbelief. "They make boo boos better! Sometimes they have cool patterns on them." Dean said excitedly.

"I don't think they will be necessary." Castiel said, showing Dean his now fully healed hands. "I heal very quickly." Dean looked disappointed.

"Fine…" He said distantly and walked into the house, leaving Loki, Cas and Sammy to wonder what had upset Dean. Really, it was only Cas and Loki wondering while Sammy pulled at Loki's hair attempting to get a strand in his mouth.

Out of nowhere Loki exclaimed, "Well I'll be damned!" Castiel looked at him angrily. "Don't look at me like that. I know why Dean-o's suddenly so upset!" He said and Castiel looked at him expectantly. "He wanted to take care of you, Cas."

"Why?" Castiel asked.

"Why?" Loki echoed in sarcasm. "Well, who wouldn't? You're adorable, like this guy." He motioned towards Sammy. "Also, that's what family does." Loki said, a faraway look in his eyes. "Or used to…" He muttered under his breath. Castiel wasn't around to hear it anyway. He had already booked it inside to talk to Dean.

Dean was sitting on the couch watching some cartoons on Bobby's incredibly dated T.V. "Dean…?" Castiel asked from the doorway to the living room. Dean turned to Castiel and patted the seat next to him wordlessly. Castiel went and sat next to him.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Dean asked, looking deep into Cas' eyes. "No more boo boos?" He asked seriously, because boo boos were serious business, Castiel gathered.

"I don't believe so." Castiel replied. He looked down to the jeans he was wearing. "I'm sorry, these are your jeans and I ripped them." He said, patting the torn knees of the jeans.

"Jeans don't matter." Dean said. "Just matters if you're okay." He finished and Castiel nodded.

"Your father, however, won't be happy." Castiel said and Dean nodded. Castiel sat next to Dean on the couch, fingering the holes in Dean's jeans. They sat in a comfortable silence, watching the cartoons play on the T.V. screen, until Loki came barging through the front door making unnecessary amounts of noise. Dean jumped almost a foot off the couch and turned to glare at Loki.

"What was that for?" Dean demanded angrily. Loki shrugged, jostling Sammy who was perched on one of his shoulders sucking a strand of his hair.

"You ditched me!" Loki complained and Sammy threw in his two-sense as well, shrieking loudly and making Loki wince.

"I didn't say you couldn't follow me." Castiel said distractedly, still fingering the holes in Dean's jeans.

"I figured you could use some alone time." Loki said, he raised his eyebrows at Castiel's constant attention to his jeans. "What's up with your pants, kid?" He kneeled down

"I tore holes in them." Castiel said guiltily. Loki looked critically at the jeans and placed his hands over the knees. When he pulled them away the fabric was knitted back together seamlessly.

"There." Loki clapped his hands. "Good as new." He grabbed Sammy who was doing a good job of balancing on his knee and placed him back on his shoulder.

Castiel looked amazed at his jeans. "Thank you!" He said happily. "Mr. Winchester will not be angry now." Dean smiled at Cas and nodded his head.

"Why would John be angry? They're your pants." Loki asked, wondering if he had to teach John Winchester another "lesson".

"They aren't my pants, they're Dean's. I've been using his clothing." Castiel explained. "I don't need to change clothing, but John insists on it, as well as taking baths." At the word "bath" Dean shuddered.

"That's it, we're going shopping." Loki said, he then snapped his fingers and they were in the middle of a clothing store. Dean looked around in amazement and Sammy giggled at the rush in his stomach. Castiel was giving Loki a very suspicious look. "What? Angels aren't the only creatures with awesome teleporting powers." Loki defended, Castiel still looked unconvinced, but lucky for Loki, Dean had disappeared down one of the many aisles, demanding Cas' immediate attention to look for his missing charge.

"Dean?" Castiel called running down the aisles and scanning the area for any trace of Dean. "Dean!" He called again. Something grasped his ankle and he let out a yelp of surprise, turning to see Dean grinning at him from between two pair of men's khaki pants.

"Got you!" He said happily and Castiel smiled.

"You scared me, Dean." Castiel said. They made their way back to Loki, eyeing the clothes on the racks. Loki met them half way, grinning like a lunatic. In his hands he held a powder blue shirt with "angel" written across the front in a darker blue calligraphic font.

"I found you a shirt already." He said happily. Castiel did not look pleased.

"People are not supposed to know I am an angel. Father said that it will frighten people." Loki rolled his eyes.

"Come on! Who cares? It's not like anyone will take the shirt seriously." He said in a very childish and whiny voice.

"No, Loki. I'm not wearing that." Castiel said firmly. Loki huffed at him and crossed his arms.

"Fine." Loki said. Dean had found a dark green shirt with a red sports car embroidered on the front and was showing it to Castiel. It was obviously a shirt that Dean liked, not Castiel, but he smiled and took it, holding it in his arms. "Oh sure, as long as _Dean_ picks it out it's fine." Loki said in annoyance.

"I know what Cas likes!" Dean said happily.

"And Cas likes sports cars?" Dean nodded enthusiastically and Loki sighed. Cas was just holding the shirt and watching the people file past them. "See anything you like?" Loki asked and Cas went over to the rack with plain t-shirts with assorted colors. He picked out a blue one, a red one and another green one.

"Boring." Loki declared and Castiel frowned.

"I like them." He said decisively and Loki sighed.

"Let's go get you some pants, then." Loki said, ruffling Cas' hair.

Getting pants was a lot easier than picking out shirts. They picked out three or four pair of jeans, and Loki complaining about how skinny Cas was. They returned to Bobby's house in time for the phone to ring and Cas ran to answer it. He knocked the phone out of its bed and fumbled with the buttons before figuring out which one actually answered the phone.

"Hello?" Cas said into the receiver.

"_Cas! How was today? Did Dean behave?" _It was John checking in from the motel he and Bobby were staying at.

"Yes. Dean was fine." Castiel said. "Sammy cried a bit, but we managed to calm him down."

_"Okay, good. Anything else you need to tell me?" _John asked, he sounded kind of rushed, and Castiel could faintly hear Bobby yelling in the background for John to get off the phone and help him with something. Castiel looked over to Loki.

"No. Nothing." Castiel said.

_"Alright. I'll see you in a couple of days." _John said and Castiel heard a clicking noise as John hung up. At the same moment Dean reached for the phone. Castiel looked at him sadly.

"He hung up already…" Castiel said and Dean looked over at the phone sadly. "I'll let you answer the phone next time." Castiel decided and that brightened Dean's mood a bit.

Loki smirked. "Didn't tell John Winchester I was here?" He asked and Castiel shook his head.

"I didn't tell him. You've helped us." He explained and Loki raised his eyebrows.

"Course' I did. Let's go watch some T.V." Loki said happily, ruffling Cas' hair on the way to Bobby's living room.

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><p><strong>TBC (Reviews and the like are appreciated :)<strong>


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: **Alright... So really long time and no chapter and I have no excuse other than that I am very stressed over senior year. Good news though, I have decided to not care and just focus on graduating, because that in and of itself is going to be difficult. I'll probably have the next chapter up next week and I'm going to try and update weekly again, but I can't make any promises!

Many thanks to all of you who have left reviews, followed and favorited. I really appreciate the support! 3

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><p>Castiel, Dean and Sammy all fell asleep on the couch watching an old western movie Bobby had hidden under the television stand. Popcorn and candy wrappers were strewn across one end of the couch to the other and the four boys were piled up. Dean and Castiel were on either side of Loki, Sammy sitting in his lap. They all had fallen asleep about thirty minutes into the movie, leaving Loki alone to watch it. It was now four in the morning and Loki was stiff, flipping channels using his powers rather than the remote which had been kicked off the coffee table by Dean. He almost cried in relief when Cas and Sammy stirred first.<p>

"Hey, guys." He whispered. "Mind sitting up a bit, so I can get up? I'm stiff!" He whispered again and Cas looked at him groggily before complying. Sammy was placed in Cas' lap and Loki stretched. "Thanks!" He said happily, Castiel rubbed at his eyes and held Sammy close like a teddy bear, enjoying the warmth. "Are you guys hungry? Want breakfast?"

Castiel shook his head, rubbing his cheek into the back of Sammy's head, making him stir and coo. "Not until Dean wakes up." Loki sighed.

He summoned a couple candy bars, offering the milk chocolate one to Cas. "Chocolate?" Loki asked. Castiel shook his head again, disturbing Sammy who nuzzled farther into Cas' lap.

"It's four am." Castiel observed from Bobby's VCR. "John says that candy is for after lunch and dinner." Castiel recited. "Lunch is at noon and dinner is in the evening."

Loki pouted. "Spoil sport." Castiel pouted as well. The silence that followed was deafening.

Sammy hiccupped and broke the silence, waking himself up in the process. The hiccups continued until Sammy started crying and then continued along with his sobs. Castiel rocked and shushed him to no avail, while Loki unhelpfully laughed. Needless to say Sammy was not happy about his hiccups.

Dean jumped awake when Castiel got up and carried Sammy past him. "Was'rong?" He asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Sammy got the hiccups and doesn't appreciate them." Castiel said and Dean nodded.

"He does that sometimes." Dean informed. "Better than when he's gassy."

"I'm sorry he woke you up." And Dean shook his head. "S'okay, that's my job." He said, offering with outstretched arms to hold Sammy. Castiel complied and handed him over and as soon as Sam was situated in Dean's arms he calmed, still hiccuping a little, but looking up at Dean with wide eyes. Dean looked down at his brother and poked his nose. "Boop!" He said and Sammy giggled. Suddenly Loki snatched Sammy from Dean's arms spinning around with the baby and gathering him to his chest.

"Hey!" Dean shouted angrily.

"Since you're all awake, Sammy and I are going to make breakfast." He said, as they disappeared into the kitchen.

Dean and Cas blinked at each other. "Wanna watch T.V.?" Dean asked, grabbing the remote. Castiel merely nodded and settled next to him on the couch as Dean rewound the tape in the VCR.

Surprisingly, it took Loki and Sammy exactly three hours to make breakfast and he ushered Dean and Cas into the kitchen excitedly. They were immediately assaulted with all sorts of smells and Loki presented to them a large spread of breakfast food. "Ta da!" Loki said, motioning towards the table. He rushed them all into their seats and began filling plates with food.

"Loki, why…?" Castiel trailed off observing everything on the table, most of which he'd never even tasted before.

"Because John left you guys home alone, and as punishment I'm spoiling you all. He'll learn not to leave his kids alone!" Loki said, a mischievous grin on his face. He handed Castiel his plate which consisted of pretty much everything on the table. Dean's was much the same, only Dean being the pickier of the two, started taking items off his plate and replacing them with larger servings of others. Loki watched them expectantly, eating off of his own plate and feeding Sammy what looked like puréed waffles.

"Did I miss anything?" Loki asked around a mouthful of food. "Ask and you shall receive!" He said cheerfully. Castiel frowned at him.

Dean surveyed the table thoughtfully. "There's no pie." He said, insulted. "There's gotta be pie." In reply, Loki snapped his fingers and there were three different types of pie on the table. There wasn't much space for them, so they sat perched upon stacks of other food items.

Dean's face immediately grew lighter; he stretched across the table and helped himself to several pieces of each. He looked over to Cas and grinned. "You gotta try some!" He shouted, grabbing Cas' fork from his hands and shoving it in one of his own slices of pie. He brought it up to Cas' lips, making what sounded like choo-choo train noises.

Castiel glared at him petulantly, but allowed the fork past his lips. He nodded his head at Dean, letting him know the pie tasted good. Dean gave him back his fork and grabbed his own, digging in to the pies with enthusiasm.

"So pie, I'll keep that in mind." Loki said with a smirk, feeding Sammy another spoonful of waffle or pancake or both. It looked as if he had also mixed syrup into the mess as well, so Sammy would be sugar high the whole day.

Their peaceful morning breakfast was interrupted suddenly by the phone's ringing. Dean rushed over to it, followed by Cas. He grabbed the phone off the receiver.

"Daddy?" Dean called into the phone hopefully. "It's Dean."

"_Sorry, Kiddo, this is Bobby. Is Cas there?" _Bobby's voice floated from the phone. Dean frowned.

"Yeah, but I wanna talk to Daddy." Dean said sadly.

_"Sorry! Yer' Dad's a little busy right now. He'll call you tonight. I need to talk to Cas." _Bobby explained to the child. Regardless, Dean's frown grew and he thrust the phone non-too-gently into Castiel's hands.

"It's Bobby." He explained, before heading back to the table, shoulders hunched. Castiel watched him go as he brought the phone up to his ear.

"Hello?" He frowned as he could not hear anything on the other side. "Are you there?" He looked over at Loki with a furrowed brow. Loki responded by getting up and coming over. He took the phone from Castiel and flipped it. Suddenly Bobby's voice was loud and clear.

_"Idget! You've got the phone upside down, don't you?" _ Bobby shouted into the other end.

"Yes, but I've righted it." Castiel answered. He heard static as Bobby sighed.

_"Sometimes I worry about you, kid." _He said. Castiel felt rather guilty for causing Bobby grief.

There was a long, slightly uncomfortable silence.

_"You still there, kid?" _Bobby asked and Castiel nodded. _"Can't hear your brains shaking, kid." _

The expression confused Castiel for a moment, before he replied. "I am here." cautiously.

_"Anyway… I called to let you guys know that we're extending our trip a little bit." _Castiel's brow furrowed.

"Why?" He said, it came out a little more firmly than he intended.

"_Don't get snippy with me!" _Bobby scolded. _"I'm sorry, but this hunt is taking a bit longer than we expected. We should be back by Saturday." _

"Oh… Alright." Castiel said, he glanced over into the kitchen where Dean was poking glumly at his pie. "Remind Mr. John to call tonight, please."

_"Okay." _Bobby agreed. _"Do you need food or money? Let me know, I can send someone over." _Bobby asked. Castiel glanced over to the kitchen table where the load of food was piled up.

"No." Castiel said and he vaguely heard Loki chuckle from the kitchen. Castiel assumed he was using his abilities to listen in on the conversation.

"Nah we're good!" He shouted. Castiel winced and anxiously waited for Bobby to ask about who was in the house. Instead he was met with a long silence.

"Sir…?" Castiel asked cautiously.

_"What the hell was that?" _

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><p><strong>TBC... <strong>

****I've still not managed to add the plot yet. There is a plot, I promise, but I want to write more fluff!


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: **Schoooooooooooool...

I'm pretty sure I've edited this 3 times already, but if you see something wrong, let me know!

Also, me and bath scenes.

Thank you to all of you who have reviewed and favorited! Here's another chapter!

Next chapter has plot development! Wooh!

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><p>"<em>What the hell was that?" <em>Bobby's short reply rang through the phone and seemed nine times louder than it actually was. Castiel mentally cursed Loki.

"What?" Castiel said dumbly. Perhaps if he pretended not to have heard it, Bobby would just brush it off.

"_Castiel, I know you heard that." _Bobby pressed; Castiel looked to his shoes for a course of action. When they provided no answer, he decided to continue playing dumb.

"I didn't hear anything." He assured Bobby in a calm voice. He could hear Bobby grumbling on the other end.

He heard Loki whisper "Ooooops" from the kitchen in a tone of voice that suggested he felt no remorse for his behavior. He and Castiel would be having a talk.

"_Okay. I'll let you off the hook this time, boy. But if I find anything amiss when I get home, you better be ready to explain." _ Bobby warned.

Castiel nodded his head again and the belatedly replied with a "Yes, sir." Bobby grumbled on the other end for a while and then hung up.

"Loki!" Castiel turned and shouted. Loki shielded himself with a plate from the onslaught. "Bobby Singer would not be enthusiastic about knowing you are here!" He continued. "I appreciate your help, but it would be detrimental to both you and myself if you should be caught."

"Dude, slow your roll." Loki said, putting the plate back on the table. Castiel gave him somewhere between a frustrated and confused look.

"I don't have a roll!" Castiel shouted, more from frustration than anger.

"Then here!" Loki threw one of the frosted pastries on the table in Castiel's general direction. "Have one." Castiel caught it and fumbled with a few seconds, getting the pink frosting all over his hands. "It's not exactly a roll, but…"

"I do not want a roll." Castiel said finally, setting the offending pastry on the table. "I know you are trying to distract me." Castiel said, crossing his arms.

"It working yet?" Loki asked, grabbing the pastry off the table and eating it. Castiel pouted. "Don't look at me like that, I get caught and I'll say you had nothing to do with it."

"What about me?" Dean interjected and Loki ruffled the grumpy child's hair.

"I'll say it was all on me, sport." Loki said. Dean nodded in satisfaction and fixed his hair.

"That is not the point." Castiel said, trying to gain Loki's attention, he was rewarded by a raised eyebrow. "Bobby has knowledge on your kind. He has an extensive section in his library on Tricksters." Loki let out a "hm" as he played with Sammy's toes. "I believe he may have dealt with your kind before."

"Probably has." Loki said. "He is a hunter, after all, but you don't need to worry. I'm crafty." He said with a wink in Castiel's direction.

Castiel let out a sigh, but relented. "You are not the only thing that is 'crafty' that he has killed." He said arms crossed. "Regardless, you need to take caution not to be caught. I have no desire to have my identity discovered by this man either."

"Don't sweat it. I won't let him hurt you." Loki assured and patted Castiel warmly on the head. "Is everyone done with breakfast?" He asked lightly, Dean nodded and Sam made a loud and happy shrieking noise. "Alright!" He snapped his fingers and the food was gone. He grabbed Sammy out of his seat and loudly announced "Bath time!" everyone followed after him.

Soon after, they were all piled in one of Bobby's small bathrooms, Loki was perched on the toilet and Sammy was in the bath. Dean and Cas sat on the edge of the tub, Castiel keeping a careful watch over the babe as he splashed and gurgled at his big brother.

"De, de, de, de, de, de!" Sam huffed out and splashed at his brother.

"Deannnnnnn." Dean said, emphasizing the n.

"De, de, de, de, de, de, de!" Sam insisted.

"No! Deeeeee-nnnnnn." He drew out his name into two syllables, emphasizing both parts.

Sam gave up and let out a screech that sounded rather frustrated.

Loki laughed. "Try saying, Loki!" He prompted. Sam just stared at him blankly for a few moments before breaking out into a grin and splashing the tub water towards him. "Loki!" Loki shouted at him. Sam screeched again. "You little joker." Sam giggled at him.

Castiel and Dean were watching with amusement until Dean started yawning. He grabbed onto Castiel's sleeve. "Hey, Cas?" Dean asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Yes, Dean?" Castiel asked, turning to face him.

"M' sleepy." Dean said simply and got up from the edge of the tub, Castiel following.

"Loki, I believe it's naptime." Castiel said as he followed Dean out of the bathroom. Loki nodded with a smirk and turned his attention back to Sammy.

As they were walking to Dean's room, Dean kept rubbing at his eyes and looking behind him at Castiel. "Are you gonna take a nap too?" Dean asked and Castiel shook his head. "Then what're you gonna do?"

Castiel looked thoughtful for a moment before muttering "Wait here." and heading downstairs. When he returned, he had a thick volume from Bobby's library. He showed the book to Dean and they continued down the hall to the bedroom. "I will read this. I think Bobby wrote it himself."

Dean looked incredulously at the book. "That whole thing! No way!" He said in a disbelieving tone. "There ain't no way he wrote that book."

"Ain't isn't a word, Dean." Castiel admonished, but Dean wasn't convinced.

"Bobby says it." He said in argument and Castiel sighed.

When they finally made it to the bedroom, Dean was yawning with a wide mouth and rubbing at his sleepy eyes. He crawled into his bed and pulled the covers over his head. "Night, Cas." He said groggily.

"Goodnight, Dean." Castiel said in return. He didn't understand why people said 'goodnight' when it was not night time, but had soon come to realize that it was just a custom.

It was never nighttime in Heaven, Castiel remembered. At least not where the angels lived, it was always light. Castiel's felt a burning in his eyes and sniffled. He missed Heaven.

He shook his head, dismissing the thoughts and opened Bobby's book. He flipped through to a crudely made "Table of Contents", the paper was yellowing. There were several titles in the table of contents and he slid his finger down reading each title. Werewolves, Changelings, Ghouls, until finally his finger brushed across Bobby's messy scrawled handwritten title, Tricksters. He opened to the approximate page number; Bobby obviously didn't care much for making sure the page number was accurate, and started reading.

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><p>TBC (At some point. In the near future.)<p> 


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: **Finally got time to update! Also, Spring Break this week, so hopefully I'll get more chapters written. I don't want to update super quickly, however, as I favor a more organized schedule. Hopefully, I'll get enough written that I'll be able to update weekly, like I've been promising. (I've also got another plot bunny in my head, but that's for a different fandom and you probably won't see it until the summer time, anyway.)

Many thanks to everyone who favorited, followed and reviewed, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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><p>After Sam's bath, Loki put him to bed in the room with Castiel and left for a bit, claiming to have business to take care of. Castiel told him to be careful and received a laugh for his concerns. Both Dean and Sam continued to sleep and Castiel continued to read. From the book, Castiel found that Bobby's knowledge about Tricksters was very vague. He had only encountered one in his lifetime and his encounter was very brief.<p>

When Castiel thought about him, Loki certainly was odd, when compared to the Trickster that Bobby had come across, but he did follow the very basic characteristics of a Trickster. Though how he was "Teaching John a lesson" by spoiling Sam and Dean was a mystery to him. He also still couldn't explain his initial reaction to Loki's presence.

Sam and Dean woke up around lunch time and Loki still had not returned, so Castiel made lunch for them. Castiel made sure Sam has some semblance of nutrition in his meal, which Sam didn't appreciate and Dean was still a little melancholy from the morning and merely picked at his food. At two in the afternoon the phone rang and both Castiel and Dean dashed to it. Dean was the first to the receiver and grabbed the phone.

"Hello?" He whispered excitedly into the phone.

"_Hello? Who is this?!" _A gruff voice shouted into Dean's ear. It wasn't Bobby or John and Dean nearly threw the phone in fear of whoever was on the other end. Castiel grabbed it before Dean managed to, however, and Castiel brought it hesitantly up to his ear.

"Hello?" He said, his tone a little more hesitant than Dean's.

"_Yes?! Hello? Who is this?!" _The man shouted over the phone again. He seemed very agitated and Castiel frowned.

"Please don't shout, sir. This is Castiel. Who are you?" Castiel said cheekily, casting a glance over at Dean who was pouting again.

"_You're that kid Bobby's been watching, yeah?" _The man asked. Castiel's brow furrowed as he thought over an answer.

"Yes…" Castiel said; there was a slight question in his voice. "Why do you ask?"

"_I'm Rufus, Bobby's friend. He asked me to call and check up on you." _The man, Rufus, explained. _"I'm in town, so if you need anything, let me know and I'll run it over." _Rufus' tone suggested he didn't really want to do this.

"No, I believe we are okay." Castiel said. Even if they weren't Castiel could trust Loki to provide, assuming he showed back up, and even if Loki left them, he could provide if worst came to worst.

"_Alright then. I'll be in town until the end of the week, so I'll call tomorrow to check on you." _ Rufus said and then hung up. Dean gave Castiel a curious look as he set the phone back on the receiver.

"That was Mr. Rufus." Castiel said with a slightly mystified look.

Meanwhile, in a dirty motel on the outskirts of a town about a day's drive from Sioux Falls, John and Bobby were knee deep in research. The case focused on a string of ritualistic murders and Bobby was pretty sure that the people or rather, things, were responsible for the murders were the demons he was chasing the night he met John.

"It was a group of them, around four or five. When I found their hideout, they all piled into that car and sped off. I wouldn't have even come close to catching 'em if they hadn't stopped to screw with you. Of course I didn't catch em'…" He trailed off and turned from the book he was reading to look at John critically. "How _did _you guys escape that crash?"

John was silent for a few moments. "I don't know." He settled on finally. He was truly unable to think of anything else.

"You don't know?" Bobby questioned incredulously. "What the hell does that mean?!"

"Damn it, Bobby. I don't know!" John shouted and smacked the table in frustration. "Isn't it good enough that we did?!" John asked desperately. He liked Castiel, he really did, but the kid was making his already complicated life more complicated.

"Alright, alright." Bobby conceded. "I just wanted to know for the safety of those kids." The room lapsed into a silence as the two started researching again.

"I would be useful if we could just kill them." John said after a long while. "The demons." He felt the need to clarify.

"That's a nice dream, John." Bobby replied in a slightly sarcastic tone. "You can't kill em', you can only exorcise them." He was much more serious now. "Send em' to Hell, but they can come right back up and be just as nasty."

"Damn." John said absently as he flipped through a newspaper.

"Well this is exciting." A voice intoned from the door. Both John and Bobby jerked sharply from their activities and grabbed whatever weapon they could find as they turned towards the unknown voice. Loki stood in the now open doorway; neither of them had heard him come in. Bobby had managed to grab hold of a shotgun and John was stuck with a tiny pocket knife.

"You!" John shouted, mouth agape. Bobby forewent words and fired a round from his shotgun into the Trickster's chest.

"Come on, this is a new shirt." He said in mock annoyance, brushing a hand over the hole in his shirt the bullet had made. "Oh well."

"Who're you?!" Bobby demanded, abandoning his shotgun when it was apparent it had no effect.

"Loki." He made a large, showy bow. "Maybe you've heard of me-"

"Trickster." Bobby said, his face set in a frown. "What do you want?"

"Nothing much, I actually have a gift for you." Loki said with a smirk. He pulled a small dagger with a copper colored hilt and a serrated blade out of his pocket and offered it to them, handle first. "Figured it'd be useful."

John moved to take it, but Bobby stopped him. "Why're you giving that to us?" He asked hostilely.

"Because you're so cute." Loki said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. When neither Bobby or John responded to his jibe, he rolled his eyes again. "It kills demons." He explained. Bobby looked tempted to take it, but stopped.

"What do you want for it?" He asked suspiciously. Loki smiled devilishly.

"Your soul." He replied simply and lasted around a minute before he burst out laughing at Bobby and John's very serious looks. "Nah. I'm just kidding. I don't need it and you do, so there you go." He stabbed the knife into the desk, making them jump. Nothing was said for a long while and nobody moved to take the knife, so Loki shrugged. "Whatever." He turned to walk out the door before looking over his shoulder at John again. "And call your kid." He said, before walking out the door. It slammed behind him and left John and Bobby in a stunned silence.

After a few long and tense moments, Bobby spoke. "Alright. Explain what the hell that was." He said as he turned to John. John looked towards the door sheepishly and prepared to launch into a very long story.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: I told myself that there would be no Happy Wars until I updated this chapter and it worked! I'm going to shoot for a longer chapter next time, but I think this chapter is a sufficient enough size for right now. I just feel like this fanfiction has a lot of chapters when it really doesn't need them. Tell me your thoughts?**

**Also, once again, many thanks to those who reviewed, followed, favorited, ect. It's very appreciated and very motivat****ing!** **  
><strong>

**While we're on the subject, I was looking through the stats of this fanfiction and I am very surprised by the number of people who read this or have looked at this that are from non-English speaking countries. The internet is so cool!**

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><p>Castiel was beginning dinner when Loki appeared again. Dean had been sat near the phone since snack time and Sam was lying on the couch, contently playing with his toes. Loki whistled and only Dean really showed he was surprised by the noise, jumping an inch out of his seat.<p>

Castiel turned his attention from a pan of partially cooked meat to Loki. "Hello, Loki." He said formally, nodding his head. Loki crossed his arms.

"I see you managed to hold the fort without me." He said as he walked to the couch. He scooped Sammy up from his spot and laughed when Sammy erupted into a series of pleased coos. "Hey there! Was Cas nice while I was gone?" Sammy screeched happily and Loki laughed some more.

Castiel looked as if he wished to say something to that, but kept his mouth shut. Dean turned his attention back to the phone.

"Wow, you're just a bunch of livewires, aren't ya?" He teased. He set Sammy on his hip and walked into the kitchen.

"Dean has not been in a very cheerful mood since this morning." Castiel said as an explanation and apology. "He really wishes for his father to call." The meat sizzled in the pan and Castiel prodded it absently with a spoon. "I am also cooking meat for the first time." He said glumly.

Loki ruffled his hair and took over cooking. "Go play with Dean and cheer him up, I'll cook." He said, nudging Castiel out of the way with his hip. Sammy who was perched on his other hip made a grab for Castiel's hair and missed, letting out a frustrated screech. Castiel nodded and headed over to where Dean was sitting.

"Dean." He called, grabbing onto his jacket to gain attention. Dean turned his gaze to him and looked altogether uninterested.

"When's Daddy gonna call, Cas?" He asked sadly.

"I don't know…" Castiel answered honestly. "But… I believe the longer you sit and wait, the longer it will feel. Perhaps you would like to come play?" Castiel felt odd asking Dean to come play with him. It felt very childish. He felt Jimmy laugh at him

You are_ a kid, silly!_ He said, probably excited about playing, even if he wasn't the one performing the action.

Dean hesitated before getting off the chair, looking to the phone before turning his eyes back to Cas. "Kay…" Dean conceded and allowed Castiel to lead him over to the living room. While Loki cooked dinner, they busied themselves with building a fort out of the many books in Bobby's library. By the time they had finished, the phone was ringing.

"You were right, Cas!" Dean shouted happily as he raced to the phone. He snatched it off of the wall and listened to the other end for a few moments before whispering "Hello?" into the receiver.

"_Dean?" _John's voice came in from the other end. _"I need you to be completely honest with me. Is anyone there besides you, Sammy and Cas?" _John sounded urgent and Dean hesitated, looking into the kitchen to see Loki.

"Uh…" He thought for a moment. "I don't think so." He said finally. He didn't want Loki to be in trouble.

"_Are you absolutely sure?" _John asked, Dean frowned and Castiel gave him a confused look, unable to hear what John was saying.

"Yeah!" Dean said, slightly offended. "Daddy, I wanted to talk to you! When are you coming back?" He switched the subject, hoping to be able to actually speak to his father before he hung up.

"_It'll be a few more days…" _John said, and Dean's face scrunched up unhappily.

"But I wanna see you now!" He whined. A rush of static on the other end indicated John's sigh.

"_Dean… Buddy, you've gotta wait." _John said and Dean pouted.

"Fine." He said shortly.

"_Dean, you know I love you, right?" _John asked. Dean's pout softened slightly.

"Yeah… I love you too." Dean replied.

"_Can you give Cas the phone now? I need to talk to him." _

"Mm-hm. Bye, Daddy." Dean handed Castiel the phone after that.

"Hello?" Castiel asked, rather confused.

"_Bobby says that he heard someone else in the background the last time he talked to you." _John stated firmly. Castiel cast a glance over to Loki, who had turned, probably to listen in on the conversation. _"He says you didn't hear anything, but to be absolutely sure. Is anyone there besides you, Dean or Sammy?"_

"No." Castiel said, his brow furrowed. What had brought this about so suddenly?

"_This is serious, Castiel. I need to know. Is Loki there?" _John's tone was firm and commanding, and Castiel's stomach tied itself in knots. It was a rather curious feeling.

"No…?" Castiel more questioned than stated. "Why would a trickster be here?" He asked, feigning innocence. Loki snorted quietly and Castiel gave him a severe look.

"_He came to our hotel room a few hours ago and told me to call. It seemed like he'd been there." _John explained.

"No. There hasn't been anyone here, but us." Castiel stated. "A man named Rufus called earlier…" Castiel said, trying to divert John onto another subject.

He could hear John speaking to Bobby in the background before John got back on the line. _"Yeah, I forgot to tell you about that. Bobby's called people to help look after you kids while we're gone. They'll call every once in a while." _There was another quiet conversation between Bobby and John before John added. _"If any of the other phones ring, don't answer them."_

Castiel was rather curious as to why, but didn't question it. "Okay." He said and John said goodbye to him before hanging up. As soon as the phone was put back on the receiver Loki let out a sigh.

"Wooh! That was close! We almost got busted!" He laughed. "Dinner's ready, by the way."

"This isn't funny, Loki." Castiel commented dryly. "Did you go and harass them while you were gone?"

"Hey! That's my business!" Loki said defensively and almost grinned guiltily. "Yeah… I gave them something to help them with their hunt. I don't know why they're so pissy about it." Loki shrugged.

"Loki! Now we have to be twice as careful." Castiel sighed.

"Do you think Bobby knows about you yet?" Loki asked. His tone was a bit more serious. "Or did John keep his mouth shut?"

"He did not seem hostile over the phone. Though I'm sure he has his suspicions." Castiel said. He turned to Dean. "Thank you for not telling you for not telling your father about Loki."

Dean gave Loki a critical look before replying. "I like Loki." He said. Then added "Sammy likes Loki too."

Loki laughed and ruffled his hair "Aw! I like you guys too!" They all got ready for dinner, but despite the light atmosphere, Castiel was very nervous. Bobby was a hunter and it would not bode well for him or the Winchesters if he were to find that Castiel was not human. It would bode even worse should he find out that Loki had been staying here and Castiel had been allowing it.

In the hotel room, where Bobby and John were staying, Bobby was up researching again while John slept. He'd have to schedule someone to go check in at the house, he had a feeling that both Dean and Castiel were lying. They were good kids, but Tricksters had ways to get in and manipulate people. He cast a glance over to the knife Loki had left with them, now sitting on the hotel desk. A blade that killed demons? He snorted. The was a bunch of balls.

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><p><strong>TBC (Hopefully next Sunday.)<strong>


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: I kind of need to fix the previous chapter, but I'm really super lazy and I can't right now anyway, so I'll just proof read this one extra nice and then take care of the typo thing on Tuesday... Or Wednesday... Or whenever I'm home before 9 pm. **

**In other news, I got ahead again! I have chapter 22 written and I'm around half way through chapter 23 and I'm pretty sure this fanfic will be completed in 10-15 more chapters. There will be a sequel that will be more planned out. Probably mid-summer if I'm lucky!**

**Thank you to all of you who reviewed and favorited and followed!**

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><p>The next morning was rather hectic for Castiel. He woke up to the sound of Sammy crying hysterically and not even Loki could console him. Then Dean decided to be ornery, which was not fun for Castiel and his refusal to hold Sammy "Because he smelled funny" was not helping. Thus Castiel was sitting on the couch, holding a squalling Sammy while Loki frantically wandered around the kitchen in an attempt to please both the Winchesters.<p>

Castiel lifted up Sammy and stared at him. "Why do you do this?" Sammy screamed at him in reply. "What is wrong?" He was only answered by more screaming.

"Cas, I think he's just grumpy!" Loki shouted from the kitchen. He seemed to be in the process of making a bottle.

"Maybe if Dean would hold him…" Castiel suggested as he shot a slightly disapproving look over at the mentioned child.

"No! I don't wanna!" Dean crossed his arms and frowned. At this point, the phone began to ring, causing Sammy's cries to rise in volume and Castiel to develop a headache.

"Dean, could you get that?" Castiel asked, exasperated. "I'll take Sammy upstairs."

"No!" Dean shouted, he threw himself farther into the couch and huffed angrily.

"Dean…"

"No!"

"Please?"

"No!" He kicked his legs and seemed on the verge of throwing a fit.

Castiel let out an uncharacteristically loud moan and stormed to the kitchen. He proffered Sammy to Loki. "Could you please hold him, so that I can answer the phone?" Loki smiled and grabbed Sammy from him, who, instead of being happy like he normally would be, became more frantic.

"I'll take this guy upstairs. See if I can't get him to stop fussing and go to sleep." He was already halfway up the stairs when he had finished his sentence. "Dean, you're next!" He shouted from his position on the stairs. Dean looked mildly horrified.

Castiel, in the meantime, grabbed the phone from the receiver and put it to his ear. "Hello, this is Castiel." He said shortly.

"_Hey, this is Rufus again. How are you guys doing?" _The voice that came in through the phone was casual, though Castiel knew he could hear Sammy squalling at the top of his lungs.

He contemplated how to answer him and finally settled on a "Fine" which Rufus immediately questioned.

"_You guys don't sound fine." _He commented dryly. Castiel sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that morning.

"Sammy is just being grumpy." He explained. He decided not to mention Dean's behavior.

"_Do you need me to stop in and help?" _Rufus asked.

"No!" Castiel almost shouted his answer at Rufus, but changed his tone, so that he merely sounded severe. "We are fine. I can handle it."

"_Well, Bobby wants me to come in and check up on the house this evening anyway. Do you need anything before I head in?"_ Despite his kind offer, Rufus sounded slightly suspicious, prompting Castiel to think that Bobby might have told him about his own concerns.

"We do not need anything." Castiel sighs into the phone. "Are you going to come now?" He tried to make his question sound casual.

"_Yeah. I'll head out there in a second. I should be there in about a half hour." _Rufus said, and then he immediately hung up.

Castiel almost ran upstairs to tell Loki. "Loki! Rufus will be here in a half hour and you need to leave, quickly!" He shouted anxiously. Loki smirked.

"Sure you don't want me to stay? I think Rufus would love me!" Loki joked, placing an over exaggerated hand on his chest.

"Loki! This is not funny! I am very sure Rufus would try to kill you and would not like you at all." Castiel scolded. Loki pretended to look ashamed. It was at that moment that Castiel realized the Sammy wasn't crying anymore. When Castiel turned his gaze to the baby, he realized that Sammy was sleeping quite soundly in Dean's bed. He looked at Loki questioningly. As far as he was concerned, people were supposed to sleep in their own beds. That was one of the many rules that John laid down when Castiel first began staying with them.

"What? He wanted his big brother, but he couldn't have him, so I gave him the next best thing." Loki explained with a note of pride. Sammy sighed and curled his little fist into the blankets and continued sleeping.

"I'm so glad." Castiel said, relieved. "Thank you."

"No problem!" Loki waved him off with a hand. "You said this Rufus guy was coming over soon, right? I better get going." With that, he disappeared and left Castiel alone with Sammy, the room filled with his easy breathing.

He stayed like that for a while. Something about Loki's disappearance unnerved him. It seemed so similar to something else, but he couldn't place it. And the energy he gave off…. He wanted to speak to Jimmy about it, but he was asleep at that moment.

He was pulled roughly out of his thoughts by a hard knocking on the door downstairs. He headed down the stairs quickly and was greeted by Rufus' loud shouting.

"I'm here! Open up, I've got some stuff for you!" He shouted through the door. Castiel unlocked the door and opened it, but left the chain lock on, partly because he couldn't reach it, but also he wasn't so sure about Rufus just yet. He peaked out through the small space and saw him. He was tall and dark, with a mustache, probably around Bobby's age. "Hey kid, are you going to let me in?" Castiel stared at him for a moment, recalling what Bobby said about tests. He knew himself that Rufus wasn't a demon, but he wanted to make it appear as if he didn't.

"Could you give me a moment?" Castiel said, more than asked and headed into the kitchen, leaving the door ajar. He returned a few minutes later carrying a small, silver flask and a chair from the dining room. He set the chair down a few feet from the door and gave Rufus the flask through the space in the door. "Bobby says you should drink that before you come in."

Rufus didn't protest and basically chugged the contents of the flask. He raised an eyebrow at Castiel and smirked. "You just call him Bobby?" He asked, and Castiel turned red, he'd forgotten the formality.

"A-ah, I mean, Mr. Singer." He supplied, and Rufus laughed. Castiel climbed up onto the chair and unlocked the chain lock. Rufus swung the door open and helped Castiel off the chair before handing him a bag.

"This is just some stuff I thought I should pick up." He said, before Castiel took the bag and looked inside. It had a pack of diapers in it and a pacifier. Castiel grabbed the pacifier out of the bag and examined it.

"I didn't know if you guys had one." Rufus said, shrugging. Castiel was pretty sure they had, but thanked Rufus anyway.

"Alright, I just have to go through and check up on the seals and make sure you've got a good supply of holy water, you know, the usual." Rufus said casually and proceeded to walk into the living room as if he owned the place. As soon as Dean laid eyes on him, he launched off the couch and out of the living room to hide behind Castiel.

"Who's that?" Dean asked quietly, observing Rufus move the rug in the living room and reveal a devil's trap in red spray paint. "He's scary."

"That is Mr. Rufus, he is Bobby's friend." Castiel explained to him quietly. "He's checking around to make sure none of the seals are broken."

"He's still scary." Dean said, glaring at Rufus.

"I can hear you!" Rufus said in an affronted tone, Dean cowered behind Cas, but still found the courage to stick his tongue out at him.

"Where's Sammy?" Dean asked, suddenly, after a couple minutes of watching Rufus rummage around the house.

"In the bedroom." Castiel replied. "He's napping."

"Can we go upstairs?" Dean finally asked, and Castiel nodded. He led the way up the stairs with Dean holding onto his shirt, still casting suspicious glances at the man who was now in the kitchen. Castiel heard the distinct sound of something breaking and winced when Rufus cursed loudly.

When they made it upstairs and into the bedroom, Sammy was partially awake and smiling a loopy smile at the ceiling. When he heard Dean and Castiel come in he rolled to his side and made a happy cooing noise.

"I'm glad you are feeling better." Castiel sighed with relief.

"Hey! Why's he on my bed?!" Dean shouted, affronted. He marched over and glared at Sammy, hands on his hips.

"Because apparently he wanted you to hold him and you wouldn't." Castiel said, wrinkling his nose disapprovingly at Dean's behavior. "So Loki put him in here."

"I still don't get why he's gotta be on my bed." Dean spat back angrily. "He'll make everything smell funny."

"I don't think he smells bad at all." Castiel said with a hint of confusion. "I bathed him yesterday evening."

"He just does." Dean said firmly.

There was a long silence, before another crashing noise was heard, followed by another curse.

"Why does he keep breaking things?" Dean asked curiously, peering through the door and down the hallway. Castiel made a slight shrug. Sammy took this opportunity to screech very loudly.

"Is everything okay up there?!" Rufus' voice floated up from somewhere in the library.

"I would like to ask you the same." Castiel shouted down the stairs.

"I'm fine, Bobby just moved some things and I keep knocking em' over." Rufus said. His voice was slightly closer now. "Mind if I come up there? I need to check the salt lines."

"I don't mind." Castiel said as Rufus made his way onto the stairs. Dean immediately darted out of the doorway and onto the bed with Sammy. "Dean is shy." Castiel explained when Rufus gave him a questioning look.

Dean remained on the bed the entire time Rufus was upstairs. It took Rufus around fifteen minutes to check all the window sills and underneath the beds and rugs. When he was done, he made his way downstairs followed by Castiel.

"It looks like everything's good. Don't know why Bobby was so worried." Rufus said, scratching the back of his head. He handed Castiel a piece of notebook paper with his name and a number scrawled on it. "Call me if you need anything. I'll be checking in next time I'm around." With that, he pat Castiel on the head and exited the house. A few minutes later the sound of an engine started up and faded off. Dean wondered downstairs after that, carrying Sammy, who apparently didn't smell funny anymore.

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><p><strong> TBC (It definitely will be on Sunday. It must be on Sunday. I promise!)<strong>


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: I lied about updating every Sunday again. I apologize.**

**ALSO DAT FINALE WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MYSELF UNTIL THE NEXT EPISODE HELP ME.**

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><p>Loki returned to the kids around lunch, and was quite surprised that things had calmed down exponentially since he'd left. Castiel was in the kitchen cooking lunch and Dean and Sam were sitting on the couch watching some old western. He kicked Cas out of the kitchen to make lunch himself, and within five minutes there were ten grilled cheese sandwiches stacked on a plate and a large pot full of tomato soup set on the table. Sammy had puréed peaches.<p>

After lunch, came nap time which Sammy was having none of. He agreed to being laid down, but absolutely refused to go to sleep. Dean was a little more agreeable and was out for the count in five minutes. Sammy continued to giggle and coo hours after that, even with Loki periodically rocking him and Castiel singing to him. Dean woke up around three and the phone rang at four, which Castiel allowed Dean to answer.

"No, Daddy. Rufus was scary." Dean said into the phone. They had been talking for a while now and Loki and Castiel has decided to retreat to the kitchen to talk quietly as they listened to Dean's end of the conversation. "He knocked stuff over and broke it!" He tattled. He was silent for a minute before replying. "Me and Cas went upstairs with Sammy." More silence. "Kay…" After that he turned and called for Castiel, who walked briskly over to the phone. "Daddy wants to talk to you." He said, handing the phone to Cas.

"Hello." Castiel greeted.

"_Hey, Cas, how was Rufus' visit?" _John asked, getting straight to the point.

"It went well, I think." Castiel said.

"_You think?" _John asked, a little suspicious.

"I think he broke some things." Castiel said, and John laughed a little bit.

"_Dean said that too." _He told him. _"Bobby got a call from him and he said some stuff got moved on purpose."_

"On purpose?" Castiel questioned, casting a glance over into the kitchen at Loki.

"_Dean probably did it, he's a little bit of a trouble maker" _Castiel didn't argue. He was just glad that John didn't suspect Loki doing it. _"Bobby wants to talk to you, so I'll talk to you tomorrow. We should be back, probably the day after tomorrow, so hang in there until then." _With that, there was the sound of the phone being handed off to someone else.

"_Hey, Castiel." _Bobby's rough voice came in over the line. _"How are things?"_

"Going well, I suppose." Castiel answered. "Dean and Sam were being disagreeable this morning, but they were fine after Rufus left."

Bobby chuckled a bit. _"Probably thought Rufus would stay if they kept fussing. He likes to play daddy sometimes, didn't bug you too much, did he?" _

"No, he came in, checked the wards and seals and left." Castiel said. he looked over to the bag that Rufus had brought over. "He also purchased us some things to help with Sam's crying."

"_He didn't tell me about that." _Bobby remarked absently. _"What'd he get you?"_

"A container of diapers and a pacifier." Castiel said.

"_Did it help at all?" _Bobby questioned, Castiel could almost hear the smirk in his voice.

"Not particularly, however, the diapers may be helpful in the future." Castiel replied thoughtfully. In reality, John had bought enough diapers to last six months before they left, so the diapers Rufus bought were pointless.

"_Heard Dean was being a peach." _Bobby commented.

"Dean was not a fruit at any point today." Castiel deadpanned with a tilted head.

"_What? No, that's not what I meant…" _Bobby said, trailing off.

"Then what did you mean?" Castiel asked.

"_Nevermind." _Bobby said dismissively. _"I gotta go, John and I have a long day tomorrow, but we should be back the day after." _

"Alright. Dean will be happy." Castiel said with a smile. "I look forward to seeing you."

There was a pause on the other end before Bobby grunted out a _"Yeah" _before hanging up.

Loki, Sam and Dean came into the room after he had hung up the phone and Loki ruffled Castiel's hair.

"What's the word?" He asked, Castiel tilted his head and Loki rolled his eyes. "What did they say?"

"They should be back the day after tomorrow." Castiel replied, and Loki gave an over exaggerated sigh of relief.

"Finally!" He said, bouncing Sammy in his arms. "That works, because I need to disappear for a bit after they get back." He said, adopting a baby voice mid-sentence as he brought Sammy to eye level.

"Why?" Castiel and Dean asked in unison.

"I've got some less than friendly people after me, and I don't want to get caught." He said. Castiel tilted his head and Dean's eyebrows furrowed.

"Like batman?" Dean asked in an awestruck tone.

"Uh, yeah, sure!" Loki said after a pause. Castiel gave him a look and Loki raised an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"Who is after you?" Castiel asked with his arms crossed.

"Who do you think?" Loki flicked Castiel's forehead. "Hunters, monsters… I don't have very many friends, Cas." He said with an almost humorous chuckle.

"Why?" Dean asked. "You're nice."

"Some people don't think so." Loki said, patting Dean on the head. "Kind of comes with being a Trickster."

"Oh…" Dean seemed kind of upset about that.

"I'll see you guys later though, so don't worry" He knelt, so he was at level with Dean and Castiel, Sammy cooed happily and reached for Dean, who took him into his arms. "Bye!" With that, Loki was gone, and Castiel once again felt uneasy.

Getting Sammy and Dean to bed was not too difficult, but Castiel still stayed up. He was concerned about Loki, and also concerned about being left in the house alone. He stayed up talking to Jimmy, who had been sleeping an awful lot lately. He told him as much.

_I don't know, I'm just a lot sleepier now than I usually am._

"I'm worried." Castiel said, he was currently sitting outside the room Dean, Sammy and he shared. "I don't know if that is normal or not. I don't have anyone to ask…" He was getting rather overwhelmed.

_It's okay. It'll be okay. _Jimmy assured. _I don't mind sleeping._

Castiel hummed in order to let Jimmy know he'd heard him. There was a long silence while they just sat there and thought.

"Maybe I should call someone and ask…" Castiel pondered. Jimmy seemed slightly excited at the thought of meeting another angel. "Father said not to call Raphael or Michael, but he didn't say not to call Balthazar." He said.

_Who is Balthazar? Is he an angel too?" _

"He's a friend." Castiel said with a fond smile "A very good friend. I don't think he would mind coming to see me." With that, he gathered himself up and headed downstairs.

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><p><strong>TBC... (Finals are over, so chapters should be better. Also, where am I even going with this?! I have an end goal in mind, but Cas seems to have his own agendas right now.)<strong>


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Hey look, an update! That's rare. **

**I'm seriously trying to finish this story up before I run out of steam for it. The finale is coming up, I just need to get Bobby and John home for it. Also, a lot of you are excited to see Balthazar, and frankly (spoiler alert, I guess) He doesn't have an incredibly large part to play in this story, but will have a larger part in the sequel. (Yes, I've had the sequel plotted out since before I even started this story.) Anyway, THIS WILL BE FINISHED. I promise. It's just taking me a while because I want to write other things, but I need to focus on this first.**

**Anyways, as always, thank you very much for your reviews, follows and favorites. Please enjoy this chapter!**

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><p>"Balthazar, I request your presence." Castiel said. He was stood in the living room of Bobby's house, safely away from Sam and Dean. He did not yet know if Dean had the ability to perceive angels safely and thus wanted to make sure he would not be exposed to Balthazar. There was a slight rustling noise and the room lit up with Balthazar's grace. Slowly, to Castiel's eyes, the grace took shape, forming a young teen with ruffled blonde hair and bright silver eyes. His wings were about as messy as his hair, as he was in the process of his first molt.<p>

"Hey, Cassy." Balthazar said in a bored tone, smirk on his face. "What do you need?"

"I have a question regarding vessels." Castiel said, sitting on the floor.

"What is it?" Balthazar asked and took a seat next to him. "Your vessel isn't old enough for puberty yet, so I don't-"

Castiel cut him off with a cough. "The soul in this vessel, Jimmy, he's sleeping more often." Castiel said perplexedly. He clutched at his jacket and frowned before looking to Balthazar.

"Cas, vessel souls are supposed to sleep." Balthazar said gently, patting Cas on the head. "Nothing to worry about." He assured.

"But he did not sleep when I first took him." Castiel said worriedly, Balthazar chuckled a little.

"You weren't used to having a vessel then." Balthazar explained. "He's sleeping now because you are gaining more control. Don't be so concerned about it, it's natural."

Castiel wrapped his arms around his knees. "I don't want to lose his voice." He said quietly.

"You won't. He'll always be there, just not when you're there too." Balthazar explained with a pat on Castiel's back.

"That's not fair…" Castiel said sadly. He knew he had to take over Jimmy's body, so that he could protect the Winchesters. He knew that as a result Jimmy would fall asleep, but after talking to Jimmy and getting to know him, he didn't want to lose him.

"A lot of things, aren't fair, Cassy. It's how the world works." Balthazar said with an almost annoyed sigh. They lapsed into a silence for a while. Balthazar looked like he was going to say something, opening his mouth, but was interrupted when a door creaked open on the second floor.

"Oh! That's my cue to go!" Balthazar said before disappearing. Moments later, Dean crept downstairs, rubbing sleepily at his eyes.

"Cas?" He said muzzily. "What're you doin' up?" He went and stood before Castiel sitting on the floor, bare toes wiggling.

"I'm just…" Castiel hesitated for a moment. "I was just talking to a friend." He answered honestly. Dean looked around, expecting to see another person.

"Where're they?" He asked, blinking sleepily around the room.

"He just left." Castiel said. "Come, Dean. You need to get back to bed." Castiel said, standing up from the floor and taking Dean's hand. Together they made their way back up the stairs and Dean was tucked back into bed.

Meanwhile, Bobby was on the phone with Rufus who was reporting in from his stake out.

"_I mean, they were so casual with him. I think he's tricked them into thinking he's a friend." _Rufus was rattling off what he'd seen after his visit, having stayed for a few hours afterwards and watched the house. He was back at the hotel now.

"Probably. He gave us a knife, says it can kill demons." Bobby said. John wasn't currently in the hotel room, researching their case at the local library.

"_Nothing can kill a demon." _Rufus said with a huff. _"Who does he think he's fooling?" _

"Probably doesn't think he's fooling anyone. Just messing with our heads. That's how Tricksters are." Bobby said in reply, he was absently twirling the knife Loki gave them through his fingers. "What about that little kid, Castiel?"

"_Awful mature, but I didn't get any bad vibes from him." _Rufus said. Bobby grunted in reply.

"I don't wanna believe it, but I think there's something weird about him. I might have him looked at by someone." Bobby said, crossing his arms and putting the knife down.

"_Probably just had a hard life." _Rufus said, giving the kid the benefit of the doubt.

"Yeah, we all have." Bobby said, taking a completely different route than what Rufus expected.

"_You okay?" _Rufus asked gently.

"Yeah, I just…" He hesitated a bit, mulling over his thoughts. "Damn it! They're just kids and already they're being thrown into this goddamn world." Rufus was silent on the other end, allowing Bobby to talk. "Probably won't live past 20. It's damn sad."

"_Yeah… Anyway, I've gotta go… Early start tomorrow." _Rufus awkwardly, making a sad attempt to changing the subject.

"Yeah. You gonna watch the house tomorrow?" Bobby asked. He knew talking like that made Rufus uncomfortable, so he dropped it.

"_Of course, gotta make sure the Trickster doesn't show back up. I'm ready for him now." _Rufus said, Bobby could almost see Rufus brandishing a stake as he spoke.

"Get him, but be careful. They're crafty." Bobby said. "And try not to let the kids see you."

"_Yeah." _Rufus grunted over the line and then hung up.

Bobby sat down at the desk and continued examining the knife, turning it around in his fingers. Could this thing really kill demons? It couldn't hurt to try, could it? Moments later, Bobby was jerked from his thoughts when John unlocked the motel door and came inside, careful of the salt lines.

"Hey. What are you up to?" He said as he carefully navigated into the room.

"Just talked to Rufus on the phone, the little Trickster you've been having trouble with was with the kids again." Bobby said, miffed. John's expression darkened exponentially.

"Did Rufus get him?" John asked.

"No, he's going to try to get him tomorrow." Bobby said. John slammed his hand on a nearby end table.

"Why didn't he get him then?! You said Tricksters were dangerous, so why would Rufus just let him stay with the kids?!" John demanded loudly, someone from the room upstairs banged on the floor.

"Keep it down, John." Bobby said severely. "And Rufus didn't want to scar your poor kids for life. Can you imagine what it would be like to have someone you just met storm in and murder and a person you thought was a friend?!" Bobby crossed his arms and glowered at John. "You've gotta be tactful with these things. As a hunter, you should remember that."

"Yeah, okay, I see your point, but…" John trailed off for a moment, thinking. "Tact doesn't matter if you're dead." He said with a serious frown.

"That might be true, but your kids weren't in immediate danger. Apparently the Trickster's trying to get on your kids' good side. 'Specially the eldest one." Bobby said. He had taken on a thoughtful expression mid-sentence.

John's eyes widened a little, but Bobby didn't notice. "Castiel actually had a bad reaction to the guy when we first met him." Bobby sat a little straighter in his chair, listening intently. "He said something about it hurting when he left."

"Hurting?" Bobby questioned. "Rufus didn't report Castiel being in pain."

"It only happened once, as far as I know." John said. "The other time they were together, Castiel was unconscious." John explained.

"Why was he unconscious?" Bobby asked curiously. "Did the Trickster hurt him?" Bobby spoke as if it was his own kid that got knocked unconscious.

"No, he had a little bit of a freak out in a restaurant and passed out." John explained, pausing to think of an explanation that would not make him seem abusive and make Castiel seem anything less than human. "He had just joined our family. I found him, and he said he didn't want to go home, so after some consideration, I kept him." John paused, thinking. Bobby took it as a pause for him to digest the information. "Then at a restaurant, I raised my voice and he completely had a breakdown. It scared me, I though he might've been a demon, so I left him there and ran with Dean and Sammy." John looked at his feet in shame.

Bobby grunted, telling John he understood… Or disapproved. John wasn't sure which.

"Anyway, later, the Trickster brought him to our hotel room and told me to take care of him." John said, scratching the back of his head.

"You don't think they're connected somehow, do you." Bobby asked, crossing his arms and giving John a suspicious look. He was no longer sitting down, but was leaning on the desk he was previously sitting at.

"I… I don't know. It would make sense, but Castiel didn't even recognize the thing when we first saw him." John said honestly. He really didn't like where this conversation was going. It was starting to stray towards the "Cas isn't human" territory, and that was a very dangerous place for him and Castiel to be.

"Other than the breakdown, have you noticed anything odd about Castiel?" Bobby asked. John flinched slightly and Bobby raised an eyebrow. Not good.

"L-Like what?" John asked, feigning innocence as best he could.

"Supernatural odd." Bobby clarified. John looked at him blankly and he elaborated. "You know, can he make lights flicker, do his eyes turn black, can he make things appear out of thin air…?" Bobby trailed off with a wave.

"N- No, none of that stuff." John stuttered. He could tell what Bobby was thinking, and it wasn't good.

"John, this is serious. I like the kid too, but he may be a danger to the other kids. Hell, that might not even be Castiel." Bobby said. "He could be a Trickster, or a demon." He said sternly.

"He's definitely not either of those!" John said defensively. His eyebrows knit together as he frowned, and his stance tightened marginally.

"How do you know?!" Bobby demanded. When John didn't answer, he quickly answered his own question. "You don't know!" Bobby accused.

"I… Well, I had him checked out." John said lamely. Bobby's anger seemed to deflate a bit.

"Checked out by who, a doctor?" He said sarcastically, but John shook his head.

"No. I had him checked out by Missouri." John said. "A psychic." He elaborated more. "You don't think I wouldn't have him checked out after all that happened?!" John huffed. "I'm not stupid."

"Alright, alright, well that saves me the trouble, I was thinking of calling in my own psychic to check him out." Bobby admitted.

"Oh…" John said blankly. Bobby had a psychic?

"Even if he's clean now, we need to keep an eye on him. Just in case." Bobby said with a scolding tone. "I don't want him getting hurt, or hurting anyone else."

John nodded lamely and sat on the bed. Bobby sighed, deciding to drop the subject for now.

"Anyway, did you find anything?" Bobby asked, and John nodded.

"This isn't a very deep rooted case. We have a few more to gank and then we're done." John said. "At least that's how it looks."

Bobby grunted in affirmation. "Then let's get ready for tomorrow, so we can get back to your kids." He said roughly, encouraging the younger hunter to turn in for the night.

"Yeah…" John said distractedly. With that, he headed towards the bathroom, leaving Bobby to inspect the knife in relative silence.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: I meant to update yesterday, but I was still recovering from the 48 Hour Film Festival. I was one of the editors, and editing means pulling an all nighter so the project gets done. It was fun, though.**

**I've started caring less about word count and more about getting something done in the chapter, so this one's a little long and I plan to write like this for the remainder of the chapters.**

**I think we're quickly nearing the climax, perhaps a few more chapters for that and then another to wrap up.**

**As always, thank you for your follows, favorites, reads and reviews! Enjoy!**

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><p>Dean woke up with Castiel standing over him. He immediately jumped, knocking heads with him and shouting in surprise. Castiel stepped back a little, rubbing the sore spot on his forehead. Dean frowned. "What was that for?!" He shouted angrily.<p>

"Shh!" Castiel said, putting a finger to his lips. He then motioned for Dean to come with him to the window to look out. Dean was confused for a while, only seeing Bobby's scrap yard until Castiel pointed his attention to the brush surrounding the yard. There in the distance, barely concealed by some hastily thrown leaves and the branches of trees, was a truck.

"I believe there is someone outside the house." Castiel whispered quietly. "I've heard tapping and knocking all morning in various places." He said with a frown.

Dean seemed to panic a little. "Who is it?!" He asked frantically, immediately making for the bed to hide. "Should we call Daddy?"

"I plan to, if the figure doesn't leave." Castiel said, walking to join Dean on the bed.

For a while, they merely sat and listened, hoping that whoever it was wandering around the yard would go away. Dean could hear it too, faint knocking noises, scratching and sometimes a voice. Suddenly, Castiel stiffened and looked towards the closed bedroom door and then to him.

"They've opened the front door." Castiel whispered, he moved towards their bedroom door.

"No, Cas!" Dean whispered loudly as he launched himself at Castiel and grabbed onto his arm.

"I'm not leaving." Castiel assured as he approached the door with Dean still hanging off his arm. He reached out a hand and Dean cringed, thinking that Cas was going to open the door. Instead, he reached forward and turned the tiny lock on the door, it slid into place with a satisfying click. Hopefully it was quiet enough that the person downstairs didn't hear. They waited a few heart beats, more than a few in Dean's case, as his heart was beating at what seemed like ninety miles an hour, and both sighed in relief when they heard no reaction from the intruder downstairs.

"I hope he doesn't come up here!" Dean whispered into Castiel's ear, clearly distressed. Castiel nodded and led him back to the bed.

Castiel contemplated confronting the intruder, but concluded it would be too risky. He had no idea who or what the thing downstairs was or if he could take it on.

"I wish we could move something in front of the door." Cas whispered contemplatively. "Sadly, I fear that would make too much noi-"

Castiel was interrupted mid-sentence by footsteps coming up the stairs. The intruder was very slowly making his way up to them. Dean held his breath and grabbed Castiel's hand to squeeze it.

"Come out, you little monster…" The person whispered as they opened a door in the hallway. They sounded mildly familiar, but Castiel couldn't make out who it was because of the voice being muffled by the walls. "Make this easy and come out!" The man said again, he was speaking in a hushed tone, almost to himself, but loud enough to make it through the thin walls. Another door opened and Dean was panting heavily with fear.

"Don't be afraid. I will protect you." Castiel whispered very quietly into Dean's hair. Sammy was asleep on the other bed, seemingly unaware of the supposed danger approaching.

"What about Sammy…?" Dean asked, he'd calmed down marginally, but was still breathing fast and there were tears in his eyes.

Castiel silently got up and lead Dean over to the bed with Sammy. "There." He whispered to them. "All of us are together now." He whispered again. "Now we need to be as quiet as possible, lest he find us in here." He leaned in close to Dean who still had his hand.

They sat there for a while, Castiel praying that the person would overlook their room or give up when they found the door was locked. As if on cue, the door knob turned, and Dean stiffened and his grip tightened, Castiel moved himself in front of Dean and Sam, preparing for a fight. The handle jiggled a bit, and the intruder cursed. Castiel cocked his head. That voice was definitely familiar, and one he had heard not too long ago, however, he couldn't place his finger on who it was.

"What the hell? Why won't this open?" The voice said. Dean looked at Castiel, confused. Then something unexpected happened, there was a knock.

Castiel frowned and Dean looked incredibly befuddled. Robbers didn't knock on doors, that was silly!

"Kids?" The voice asked cautiously. "Are you awake? It's just me, Rufus!" And now Castiel just felt stupid. Of course it was Rufus, he berated himself for not recognizing it. However, it wasn't customary to break into people's houses if you knew them was it? And why did he hide his truck?

"Why did you pick the lock to the front door?" Castiel asked suspiciously and firmly.

"Didn't think you kids were awake." Rufus said with an awkward laugh. "I figured I'd get the checking of the house over with while you were still snoozing." He said warmly.

Castiel frowned. It wasn't very likely. "I can't let you in." He said finally.

"Why not?" Rufus asked, obviously annoyed.

"I don't have the proper tests to assure me you are not a demon or otherwise inhuman." Castiel said honestly. He could tell Rufus wasn't a demon, but with the amount of supernatural creatures that could take human form, he could be hundreds of other things.

"Alright, alright." Rufus said. Castiel could see the shadows of his feet retreat from the door.

"We will not leave this room until Bobby and John return home." Castiel promised, it was really a bluff, but he didn't want Rufus pretending to leave to get them out of the room.

"Woah! Hey now, you don't even know when that will be!" Rufus said, coming closer to the door. "I'll leave, so you won't have to worry. I really didn't mean to scare you." Rufus said.

Castiel didn't say anything in return.

Rufus sighed and stepped away from the door again. "Alright, I'm sorry. I'm going now; you can call Bobby later to tell on me if you want to." He said jokingly. No one on the other side of the door laughed or made any sound, so he left with another sigh and headed downstairs.

"We don't really have to stay in here all day, do we?" Dean whispered anxiously. "I've gotta go potty." Dean fidgeted on the bed and made a pained expression.

Castiel looked concerned. "Can you wait until he leaves the premises?" He asked quietly and anxiously.

"Yeah, but only if he leaves soon." Dean warned, fidgeting some more.

Castiel sat at the window and watched as Rufus exited the house, locking the door behind him and make his way across the yard. He kept casting glances behind himself and around himself until his eyes met Castiel's. He smiled and waved, Castiel did not wave back.

Eventually he made his way to his badly concealed car and drove away down the road. Dean came up behind him and made a whining noise.

"Is he gone yet? I've really gotta go!" He said unhappily, he was fidgeting and bouncing and making pained whimpers and whines. "Caaaaaaaas! I've really, really, really gotta go!" He said a bit louder.

"Yes, it's okay now." Castiel said, turning from the window. Dean was out of the bedroom in a flash and Castiel could hear the bathroom door open and close a few seconds later. He walked out into the hall and to the door, knocking a couple times. "Do not forget to wash your hands." He said seriously. Dean shouted an affirmative.

Castiel then moved downstairs to inspect anything that Rufus may have damaged. The only thing he saw was that one of the windows was unlocked and partially opened and the rug in front of the door was slightly ajar. Luckily the window had a wooden pole in the frame to keep it from opening too much, or Castiel probably wouldn't have detected Rufus coming in. The way the rug was moved revealed a devil's trap skillfully painted underneath. He quickly covered it before Dean could see it and ask about it. He then turned his attention to the phone. He really wanted to call Bobby to report what had happened, but there was only one problem. Castiel didn't know what number to call. He didn't want to try his luck just dialing random numbers, so he left it alone. He'd talk about it when Bobby called later. If Bobby called later.

Dean wandered downstairs a few minutes after that, casting nervous glances around the room. "Is he really gone?" He asked anxiously. Castiel nodded and Dean immediately ran to him and gave him a hug. "Dad tells me I have to be a big boy for Sammy but…" He trailed off, burying his face in Castiel's shoulder.

"But what, Dean?" Castiel asked curiously, cocking his head again. He wrapped his arms around Dean and rubbed his back as his friend began to cry.

"I was so scared!" Dean said honestly. He sniffled and hiccuped, trying to get his crying under control.

"You don't need to be scared, Dean." Castiel said honestly, and Dean looked at him with teary eyes and a snotty nose. "I'll always protect you." Castiel vowed, gathering Dean closer to himself again.

"Mm-hm." Dean said with a nod. He buried his head back in Castiel's shoulder and snuffled loudly.

"Let's make some breakfast, okay?" Castiel asked, and led Dean with him to the kitchen.

Much later that evening, Bobby finally called, and Dean let Castiel answer the phone. "Hello." Castiel said, starting the conversation. "We need to talk about something."

"_Alright." _Bobby replied, he sounded surprised at Castiel's bluntness, but did not say anything.

"Do you often let your friends break into your house?" Castiel asked, he had the tone Bobby had heard many parents adopt when they were using the 'If all your friends jumped off a bridge' analogy.

"_No… Why?" _Bobby questioned. He wasn't accustomed to getting scolded by a 6-7 year old, but he figured he'd let it slide.

"Because Rufus broke into your house this morning and caused both Dean and I unnecessary stress and alarm." Castiel said, he crossed his arms and cradled the phone to his ear with his shoulder, a trick he had picked up from television.

"_Oh yeah, I forgot to warn you about that." _Bobby said, pausing when Castiel made an indignant noise on the other end. _"He was looking for something that wouldn't be there unless it didn't know he was coming." _Bobby's tone suggested that he knew that Castiel knew what he meant.

Castiel's eye's widened, but he kept his tone neutral. "I understand he was doing it for our protection, still, there was no way I could have known he was friendly."

"_You were supposed to be asleep when he came in. He said he'd be there at three or four in the morning." _Bobby reasoned. _"What were you doing up?" _He said, also adopting a stern tone. He wouldn't be talked down by a kid, no matter how mature he was.

Castiel almost replied "I don't sleep much", but rethought his answer and said "He woke me up."

Bobby coughed on the other end. _"Well, sorry about that, kid. I'm sorry he gave you that bad of a scare."_

"I was more worried for Dean. He fears the loss of his family, and an unknown intruder into the place he thought we were safe in is not a good way to assure him he will not lose them." Castiel lectured. He heard Bobby sigh on the other end and frowned. "Do not get exasperated, Dean is severely anxious right now, he has not even allowed Sammy to leave the bedroom and he barely leaves himself." Castiel said.

"_Okay, Okay, I'm sorry. It won't happen again." _Bobby said, trying to placate the kid. _"Anyway, did Rufus raise a ruckus while he was there?" _

"What do you mean?" Castiel asked, cocking his head to the side and in the process and dropping the phone. Bobby was still talking when he caught it and brought it back to his ear.

"… _Find what he was looking for?" _Bobby finished and Castiel thought for a moment, decoding what Bobby might have said.

"There was nothing major that happened while he was here, just some scratching and knocking noises." Castiel explained. Bobby cursed on the other end, and Castiel could hear a scolding shout from John.

"_Well, has anyone other than Rufus been there today?" _Bobby asked. Castiel knew what Rufus was looking for now.

He must know about Loki. This wasn't the first instance he had watched the house and possibly not the first time he had broken in. "No." Castiel answered, for once, honestly.

Bobby sighed on the other end. _"Look, I know what's going on, I know who's been visiting you, Rufus told me. That thing is dangerous and he is not a friend. You don't need to lie to protect him. We need to know, Castiel." _Bobby said seriously.

"I-I don't know what…" Castiel trailed off, looking over to Dean helplessly. Maybe he should just hang up.

"_Castiel!" _Bobby scolded. _"I'm going to put John on the phone, tell him the truth."_

"I-I…" Castiel hesitated. As much as he tried to suppress it, he couldn't shake Jimmy's natural aversion to confrontation. The boy's soul within him stirred as he heard the phone being handed to John and then John's voice over the phone.

"_Castiel, how long has the Trickster been staying with you guys?" _ John asked gently. It didn't matter how gently he asked, however, Jimmy was awake.

_What's going on?! _Jimmy's sleep muddled voice floated through Castiel's panic ridden mind.

Castiel didn't answer either question and just whispered a quick "I'm sorry" before dropping the phone and retreating upstairs to calm down.

His Father had told him many times that lies caught up to you. He had always said that the more there were the worse it would be when they did, but he had never imagined it would feel this horrible. John and Bobby probably hated him now and his panic had set Jimmy off and he was unable to console him. He heard Dean pick up the phone from where he had dropped it and begin speaking to John. Castiel was silently thankful to him for handling the situation and apologetic that he had to.

Castiel listened as Dean told John all the times Loki had been over and defending Loki by insisting he was nice and he wasn't trying to hurt them. By the end of the conversation, Dean was crying, Jimmy was equal parts confused and scared and Castiel didn't know what to do, so he cried too.

He never wanted to lie again.

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><p><strong>TBC<strong>...

**(I'm going to admit that this chapter was made of cheese, but it's okay because sometimes you need a little cheese in your life.)**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: I start college in two weeks, so I'm having a stress party. I'm currently taking 18 credit hours and I'm not bad at school, paying attention in class and writing essays, but I'm bad at managing my time. I'm really afraid I'm going to do terribly.**

**In other news, here's a new chapter. I just needed to get John and Bobby home, so not much happens. There were also a lot of letters missing at the ends of words and I checked my original copy of this chapter to see if they were my mistake and they are not, so if you see anything I missed in the proofread, please let me know and I will do my best to fix them. Regardless, I hope you enjoy.**

**Thank you very much for your reviews and favorites!**

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><p>"Cas…?" Dean said cautiously. He approached like he was trying to get to a frightened deer. "I told Daddy about Loki…" He said, expecting Castiel to get angry.<p>

Instead Castiel uncurled from his hunched over position on the floor and wrapped his arms around Dean's neck. Dean stood there for a moment before slowly wrapping his arms around Cas' back and rubbing it.

"Daddy says he isn't mad." Dean said after a few minutes of silence. "He says that Loki was just tricking us, and that we didn't know any better." He looked down at Castiel who was still partially crouched on the floor. "I don't think I believe him though. Loki was really nice and he stayed with us when Daddy couldn't." Dean explained. Castiel still didn't say anything, opting to cling to Dean like he was the only thing that would keep him up. "Cas…?" Dean called, patting Castiel's head.

"I'm sorry." Castiel whispered hoarsely into Dean's neck. "I'm tired, Dean." Castiel said, releasing his hold on Dean's neck.

"Okay!" Dean said, trying to make himself sound cheery. "Sammy's already asleep, so we can go to sleep now too." He grabbed Castiel's hand and led him upstairs.

John rubbed a hand over his face, after hanging up on the phone. "I hope Cas is okay…" He said absently, collapsing onto the bed.

"What happened?" Bobby asked with concern, worry was written all over his features.

"I think he had another episode, Dean had to take over for him." John said, laying down and placing an arm over his eyes. "Damn it, I should have known that would have happened."

"How long has the Trickster been there, did Dean tell you?" Bobby asked, opting to leave the subject of Castiel's 'episode' for another time.

"According to Dean, since we left." John said. "He apparently showed up and started taking care of them."

"Damn." Bobby hissed. "Did he say if Castiel seemed connected to Loki at all?" He asked with notable curiosity and slight suspicion.

"He said that Loki seemed to like Castiel, but it was the same with Sammy too." John said. "According to Dean, he really liked Sammy." He sounded very uncomfortable with this fact.

"We'll need to head home tomorrow and check everyone out, okay?" Bobby said more than asked. Their case was done anyways, so there was nothing keeping them from packing up and leaving.

"Yeah." John agreed. "Are you going to have that psychic you know check them out?" John asked somewhat nervously.

Bobby grunted. "I would like to, but I'll need to call her."

"Why? She doesn't take drop ins?" John asked, partially joking.

"No, she's by appointment. She makes her living off of her abilities." Bobby replied in all seriousness. "Sure, she's usually just giving out relationship advice, but that's what most psychics do nowadays." He said. There was almost a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"Well, I guess, 'do what you need to do', right?" John said, feeling awkward.

"Yeah." Bobby agreed, not helping the situation much. "Anyway, get packed, we're heading out early tomorrow." Bobby said, encouraging John into action. Bobby began packing too, casting a look at the knife Loki had given them, still sitting on the desk. He sighed, they still hadn't gotten to test it. There really was no good way to go about doing it. Still, it may come in handy, if only as a letter opener. He quickly placed it into the bag with all the other equipment, before John could throw it into the back of their truck.

Castiel woke up later than everyone else the next morning. He felt groggy and sick to his stomach and Jimmy seemed to feel the same way.

_It's like we got a cold… _Jimmy commented as Castiel rose out of bed.

"What time is it…?" Castiel asked no one in particular. He didn't expect an answer, but them Sammy squealed loudly from his spot on the bed across from his. "I see you're doing well." Castiel said with a smile. Sammy let out a coo in response. He seemed to be talking more, something that made Castiel equal parts curious and happy. Baby angels were born and aged slowly, but human children grew up quickly in comparison. He'd notice Sammy had both grown and gained more motor skills in the short time he had stayed with the Winchesters alone.

"Is Cas awake?!" He heard Dean shout from downstairs, followed by hurried footsteps pounding up the stairs as the boy ran up to them. He finally reached the room, a little out of breath, but hugged Cas tightly. "I'm sorry, Cas, I didn't know what to do!" He said immediately. "Are you okay? Do you need anything?"

"I'm alright, Dean. It's okay." Castiel responded immediately, rubbing his back. "I'm sorry about what happened last night." Castiel said, he looked down at the floor past Dean's shoulder.

"That's okay!" Dean said again, hugging Castiel tighter, if possible. "I know you couldn't help it!" He said, he pulled back to look at Castiel in the eyes. Castiel could see that Dean had been crying a bit and felt more guilt pile onto him.

"Everything is okay." Castiel said and Dean nodded. They stood there for a moment, before Castiel seemed to remember the question that had been nagging him at the back of his mind. "What time is it?" He asked.

"It's ten!" Dean said proudly. He had just recently learned how to tell time.

"Have you eaten? Is Sammy taken care of?" Castiel was about to ask more questions, when Dean shushed him.

"I made breakfast, it was just cereal, but it was just for me, so I figured it was okay." He said, addressing Castiel's first question. "And I've been taking care of Sammy since forever; of course he's taken care of!" He said, rather indignantly.

"Alright. Thank you." Castiel responded, he was glad Dean was able to take care of himself and Sammy. He still didn't know how many more times his episodes would occur. He really couldn't cure Jimmy of a natural impulse and he wouldn't be able to ignore it until he took complete control.

"Hey! Are you hungry? Do you want breakfast? I'll get it for you!" Dean asked before bounding out of the room and down the stairs without waiting for an answer. Castiel gathered Sammy soon after and followed him down.

"I can't make anything but cereal, but I'm really good at it!" Dean rambled as Castiel entered the kitchen. He seemed excited to be able to help Cas. "Also, when I was changing Sammy's diaper, he almost peed on me!" He said, turning from his work to give Sammy a look. Sammy merely giggled at the attention and clapped his hands together.

"See? He still thinks it's funny!" Dean said. "Sit down!" He set the bowl in Castiel's normal spot at the table and grabbed Sammy from Cas. Castiel nodded and sat down as Dean rocked Sammy and told him excitedly about his morning. Soon Castiel was finished eating and Sammy was fussy, so they fed him too, before they all settled on the couch.

They stayed like that, with a break for grilled cheese sandwiches at lunch, until early evening, when Bobby and John unlocked the door. Castiel, who had heard them talking on their way up to the door, did not jump, but Dean did, startling Sammy from his nap. The baby in question promptly started wailing.

"What's going on in here?" John asked, setting his bag on the floor and coming over to inspect Sammy. He picked Sammy up from the sofa and he stopped crying almost instantaneously, happy to see his father home. Bobby came over shortly after that, not saying anything, but giving all three of them scrutinizing looks.

"You are home earlier than expected." Castiel said, almost casually, there was still a hint of caution in his voice though.

"We broke a few speed limits." Bobby said in reply. He reached out to Castiel and Cas almost flinched, expecting a hit. Instead he got his hair ruffled, and he regarded the hunter with his head cocked to the side. "Good to see you, kid." Bobby said, he was rather gruff, but Castiel appreciated his lack of hostility.

By the time Bobby had finished greeting Castiel, John was settling Sammy back on the couch. As soon as he did, Dean threw himself at his father, wrapping his arms around his neck.

"I missed you, Daddy!" He exclaimed, nuzzling his face into John's shoulder. John squeezed him and patted his back.

"I missed you too, bud." He said softly. He then set Dean back on the couch and turned to Cas. "Were there any surprised while we were gone?" He questioned, Castiel tilted his head questioningly.

"Other than the one we have spoken on the phone about, none." He said. John nodded, taking Castiel's words as truth.

Bobby had wandered out of the room, and John followed him, leaving the kids to the T.V. again. Dean leaned over and nudged Castiel.

He put his lips next to Castiel's ear and whispered. "Daddy's being all 'spicious. It's like he doesn't trust us at all." He then leaned back into his own space on the couch, crossed his arms and pouted.

"He has reason to, doesn't he?" Castiel reasoned, looking down at his hands. "I would not blame him if he never trusted me again."

"Wasn't our fault." Dean said. "Loki was nice, and he took care of us when Daddy wasn't here." He glanced back into the kitchen to make sure neither John nor Bobby were listening. He noticed that Bobby was on the phone and looked back to Castiel. "Mr. Bobby's on the phone." He reported, pointing behind him into the kitchen. Castiel peeked his head up over the couch and noticed that, indeed, Bobby was on the phone.

"Who's he talking to?" Dean asked Castiel when he had returned to his previous position.

"I don't know." Castiel said distantly. He was too busy focusing his hearing on the conversation to pay much attention to Dean. Sadly, he could still only hear Bobby's end of the conversation.

"Yeah, they had a little visitor." Bobby said, pausing for a moment and then saying. "A Trickster. You know how they can mess with your head." There was another pause and Castiel could hear Bobby sigh. "Yeah, they're all under six years old." Another pause, Castiel could hear muffled yelling from the phone. "I didn't wanna leave em' alone, but we didn't really have another choice!" More muffled yelling on the phone. "It was either that or take them with us!" Bobby almost yelled. The voice quieted on the other end of the phone, so Castiel could not hear it anymore. "Yeah, so when can you get them in?" Another pause on Bobby's end. "Tomorrow?!" He sounded very surprised. "You sure about that?"

"That soon?" Castiel could hear John whisper.

"So, ten o'clock tomorrow, then?" Bobby confirmed, ignoring John's question. "Sounds good, we'll have them there." He paused and let out another sigh. "Yeah, see you tomorrow."

"Cas, Castiel. Hey, Cas. Castiel. Cas!"

Castiel came back to Dean saying his name repeatedly with a grin on his face. Castiel turned to look at him with a confused look and Dean leaned into him again.

"Were you eavesdropping…?" He asked, and then giggled.

"I was…" Castiel started and trailed off.

"Daddy says that eavesdropping is bad, but I won't tell him you were doing it." Dean assured. Castiel nodded, glad Dean was willing to keep his eavesdropping a secret. "What were they talking about?" Dean whispered curiously.

"We are going to see someone tomorrow." Castiel whispered back.

"Who?" Dean asked loudly, and Castiel put a finger to his lips, indicating that he needed him to be quiet.

"I am not sure. They seemed upset that Mr. Singer left us alone, though." Castiel whispered.

"What are you guys whispering about over here?" John's voice shouted as he came up behind the couch. Dean screeched and hopped down from the couch, avoiding John grabbing him around his middle.

"Nothing…" Dean said as he cast a nervous glance at Castiel.

"Oh really?" John asked, circling around the couch and grabbing for Dean again. He wasn't quick enough to dodge, and John had him in his arms. He started tickling Dean who howled with laughter. Sammy laughed too and Castiel cracked a small smile to see that despite the recent turmoil, John was still willing to play with his son.

"Oh, right!" John said finally, as Bobby came into the room, curious of the commotion. "We're going to see another psychic tomorrow." He said.

"Another one?!" Dean said unhappily. "The other one said everything was fine. Why do we have to go again?!" He crossed his arms angrily.

"She's just going to check you out." John said, hoping to avoid Dean throwing a fit. "Then we can come back here."

Dean sat and thought about it for a moment. "Okay…" He said finally. He uncrossed his arms and held them out to be picked up. John looked like he was going to protest, but then scooped Dean up off the floor and hugged him.

"Bobby and I are going to go and cook dinner." John said, looking over at Bobby just in time to see him cringe. He ignored him and set Dean back on the couch. "We've gotta get up early tomorrow, so bedtime is early tonight." He said before sauntering around the couch.

"Awwww!" Dean called after him as John wondered away into the kitchen to discuss details with Bobby.

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><p><strong>TBC <strong>


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Hello everyone, here's another chapter! I'm writing these pretty fast now, so updates should start coming sooner. I don't really have much to talk about besides that.**

**A big thank you to everyone who has faved, followed and reviewed! Please keep it coming, it's an incredible motivator to finish. **

**Enjoy!**

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><p>The next morning, Dean, Sammy, Cas, John and Bobby were all packed into the Impala at eight, ready for the long, two hour drive that awaited them. Sammy had gone to sleep almost as soon as they put him in the car, but Dean was fidgety and whiney. He obviously was not happy to be in the car again.<p>

"Daddy, I gotta pee." Dean said, wiggling in his seat. Bobby was driving, so John looked back at Dean with a frown.

"We stopped twenty minutes ago, why didn't you go then?" John questioned. Castiel could see Bobby roll his eyes in the rear-view mirror.

"I didn't havta go that time!" Dean exclaimed. "I gotta go now!" He said, distressed.

John ran a hand through his hair. "How bad?" He asked.

"Really, really, really bad!" Dean said, wiggling in his spot some more. John sighed and looked at the road signs to see if there was a rest stop coming up.

"There's a rest stop in ten minutes, we'll stop there." John said finally, after seeing a sign for one.

Dean let out a long whine, but nodded. Bobby rolled his eyes again and Castiel patted Dean awkwardly on the back, unsure of what he was supposed to do. Despite Dean whining and wiggling in the backseat and Castiel shuffling uncomfortably every couple of seconds, the ten minutes passed quickly and they pulled into a small rest stop on the side of the road. It wasn't anything special, just a few picnic tables and a building that housed the bathrooms. As soon as the car had stopped, Dean unbuckled himself and rocketed out of the backseat, making a beeline for the bathrooms. Cas followed close behind him.

"Dean! Wait!" John called from the passenger side door, before unbuckling and running after them.

"I'll be here when you get back!" Bobby called after him. He then reached into the glove box of the car, rifling through some of John's fake IDs and such. "This ain't a good place for these things." He commented before gathering them up and placing them under the driver's seat. He leaned back into his seat, looking over the passenger side to see if John and the kids were back yet, and was met with the honey colored eyes and childish face of Loki. He flinched away violently before pulling out his gun.

"Hey." Loki said casually. "This is a bad place to be right now." His tone was a tad darker when he said this, but he had an easy smirk that sent a bad shiver down Bobby's spine.

"Yeah, for you." Bobby replied, firing a shot past Loki's head. The bullet shattered the glass of the car window behind him. Loki merely lifted an eyebrow at the display.

"Did you want to miss me?" He asked. His smirk cracked into a slight grin. Bobby glowered at him.

"It was a warning shot, ya' moron." Bobby shouted, shaking his gun with his words. "Not that it'd do much good, shootin' ya'. What do you want?" Bobby demanded, putting the gun down and crossing his arms.

"Exactly what I said, this isn't a good place to be right now, neither is the place you're headed." Loki said, he was frowning now and looking distant.

"Why?" Bobby asked suspiciously, he desperately wished he could make a break for the trunk of the car. There were a few stakes back there that had Loki's name on them.

"Demons." Loki replied simply. They just ransacked the town you're headed to, and they're headed this way." Loki said.

"How do you know that?" Bobby asked curiously. Then his demeanor changed, remembering who he was talking to. "Do you have anything to do with that?"

"No!" Loki said and then paused for a moment. "Well… Yes and no."

"What?!" Bobby asked, equal parts confused and alarmed. "What do you mean?"

"Well… The head honcho's missing, so… By default I have something to do with the demons going crazy, but at the same time I don't." He shrugged.

"Head honcho?" Bobby questioned. He snaked his hand to his gun again, intent on drawing. "Whose head honcho?"

"Mi-" Loki began, but cut himself off with a frown. "You know…" He gave Bobby a look like everyone knew who the head honcho was. He made a vague waving motion with his hand. "God." He settled on.

"God?" Bobby asked incredulously.

"Yeah, you know, the guy in charge of everything?" Loki prompted. "Painted with a beard a lot, wears a robe, strikes down evil doers with lightening and fire?"

It was Bobby's turn to raise an eyebrow. "He's missing…?" Bobby asked. He did not seem to believe Loki's story at all.

"Well, he left, took a vacation, I guess." Loki said. "Course' I knew about it, but nobody else did, so there's panic." He explained.

"Why would you know about God going missing?" Bobby asked, he had his gun out now, but it was resting in his hand on the seat, curiosity eating his "shoot first ask questions later" course of action.

"Well… Uh…" Loki made a face like he didn't expect Bobby to have caught onto that. "Well, you know. I'm a god, he's God, we're tight." He twisted his forefinger and middle finger around each other to demonstrate.

"You're more of a demi-god." Bobby corrected. "And nice try, but I ain't buying it. What are you, really?"

Loki, if that was who he really was, sighed exasperatedly. "It's always the ones who look stupid that aren't stupid." He commented, Bobby frowned at him, but didn't say anything. Loki sighed again. "You're not gonna believe my answer any more than you believed the other one…" He warned, hanging his head slightly.

"Try me." Bobby said. He tried to make himself sound uninterested, or frustrated, but it really came out as curious and expectant.

Loki paused, giving Bobby a sideways glance before taking in a deep breath. "I'm an angel. An archangel, actually."

Bobby stared at him blankly for a moment. "Angels don't exist." He said dryly.

"Demons exist, why can't angels?" The self-proclaimed archangel shot back.

"That's just it. The world's a bad place. Demons exist and angels don't." Bobby reasoned. "Besides, even if you were an angel, why are you running around under the moniker of a Trickster? I doubt Loki takes kindly to you stealing his name." Bobby said incredulously.

The angel or the trickster or the whatever-he-was, blew air through his lips making a sound akin to a horse. "I asked him about it first, duh." He said childishly. "He was perfectly fine with it, I think he's vacationing right now" He then smiled a bit fondly and a bit mischievously. "Course' after having a relationship with Kali, I'd need a vacation too."

Bobby looked at him like he'd grown another head, momentarily speechless. The angel turned trickster grinned like a loon. "It was the best plan! Nobody even suspected I'd do it!" He said, rather pleased with himself.

"If you are an angel, why'd you take Loki's identity? Why can't you use your own identity?" Bobby asked, resigning himself, for the time being, to the fact that angels existed and apparently were full of themselves or at least this one was.

"Cause I'm a big shot up there!" The angel bragged. "I'm an archangel! There aren't very many of those." He explained, rather proudly, puffing himself up like a bird, despite his small stature. "I'm popular too. That's why I had to get away."

"Why? I'm thinking being popular in Heaven is a good thing." Bobby remarked.

"It was." The archangel said and then sighed. "But once your name gets mentioned in the Bible, things get tiring. Angels revere you, sure, but they also always come to you for help and the Big Guy gives you so many extra jobs to do, since humans recognize you." He crossed his arms and pushed himself back into the seat a bit more. "I'm the messenger for Him, you know. It's tiring, especially when He wants to answer prayer personally, so I ran away." He looked out the front of the Impala and pouted.

"How old are you?!" Bobby reprimanded out of impulse. This angel, or archangel or whatever was acting like a teenager that didn't like his boss.

"Older than dirt." The angel said. "Doesn't mean I have to act my age, though." He fished into his pocket and pulled out two chocolate bars, offering one to Bobby. Bobby declined. The angel shrugged and started eating his own, throwing another sideways glance at Bobby.

"What?" Bobby demanded.

"You aren't going to ask which archangel I am? Maybe you've heard of me! Scratch that, I know you've heard of me." He said around a mouth full of chocolate.

"Fine, I'll bite. Which archangel are you?" Bobby asked, rolling his eyes.

"Guess!" The archangel demanded, hopping in his seat excitedly. "I gave you lots of clues, guess!" Bobby balked at him. This angel was absolutely nuts.

"I don't know didly squat about archangels, boy." Bobby said angrily, crossing his arms.

The angel through an unhappy frown at Bobby and huffed. "Hey! If anyone should call anyone boy, it should be me calling you that." The angel said with mock insult. "And are you sure you don't know?" He leaned in a little bit, causing Bobby to lean back. "The messenger…? That doesn't ring a bell?" He asked in a whisper.

"No, it doesn't."

"Damn." He said, Bobby supposed he should be surprised to hear an angel swear, but he just ignored it. "I'm Archangel Gabriel, divine messenger of the Lord." He said his full name with a flourish, causing the chocolate bar in his hand to disappear as he brought his hand to his chest. "Are you surprised?" He asked proudly, looking expectantly at Bobby.

"No. And if you're done, get out of the car." Bobby said, losing all patience for this overly theatrical and childish angel. "

"Are you going to listen to my warning?" Gabriel asked expectantly, as if the very mention of his name would inspire Bobby to trust him.

"No. I'll take it into consideration, but we've got an appointment with a psychic." Bobby said.

"Why?" The angel, Gabriel, if that was his real name, asked curiously.

"Make sure you didn't do anything to the kids." Bobby said in an almost scolding tone. "And between you and me, something's weird about the Castiel kid. He's way too mature for his age." Bobby said, looking in the direction of the bathrooms.

Gabriel smirked at him. "Of course!" His smirk turned into another grin as Bobby gave him a questioning look. "He's an angel too. My favorite little brother, in fact!" He said happily. "When I heard he was sent down here I had to come check on him." He continued. "And pick on him a little..." He said mischievously.

"Does he know who you are?" Bobby asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nope! I couldn't have let him know who I am, he would have flipped!" Gabriel said animatedly. "Probably would've turned me in, too."

"Why, kid didn't rat you out when he thought you were the Trickster, why would he rat you out as an angel?" Bobby asked.

"Heaven's... Not as good a place for angels as you'd think." Gabriel said. "After I left, they probably brain washed him, made him obedient." Gabriel said, almost remorsefully. "That's another reason why I left, I'm a bit more rebellious than they'd like."

Bobby was a little put off by this information. If Castiel was trained to do whatever Heaven said, then how safe were they? Would he kill them if one of the angels told him too? How powerful was he? How powerful was Gabriel? All of these thoughts were swirling around in his head, making him more and more anxious as each one popped up.

Gabriel seemed to catch on, his expression became concerned. "If you're wondering why Cas is down here, he's protecting the Winchesters. That much I know. Although, that's not a prophetical mandate, at least not until much, much later." He said. "Knowing Dad, it's probably some kind of change of plans. He probably looked ahead and saw something not going His way." He looked thoughtfully towards the restrooms and frowned.

"What was the original plan?" Bobby asked. He was curious, he had a lot of questions, but this one was the most important to him at the moment.

"They are taking an awfully long time in there, aren't they?" Gabriel said, whether it was actual concern or an attempt to change the subject, Bobby didn't know. He frowned and opened the driver's side door. "If you're an angel, then that knife you gave me really kills demons, doesn't it?" Bobby asked, expecting Gabriel to follow him to the trunk of the Impala. Instead he was already standing there when Bobby came around.

"Yeah, of course it does. I might lie a lot, but I wouldn't lie about that." He said around a lollipop he had in his mouth.

Without another word, Bobby opened the duffle bag with the weapons and grabbed the knife, conveniently sitting on top of the other weapons where he'd thrown it earlier. "Watch my back." He commanded. Gabriel frowned, no one ordered around an archangel, except God, of course.

"Was gonna do that anyway." He said cheekily. He sauntered behind Bobby as they approached the restroom.

Bobby cautiously opened the door to the men's restroom to find John, Dean and Castiel all cornered by about three demons. John was standing in front of Cas who was standing protectively in front of Dean, hand stretched in front of him, presumably holding the demons back with some kind of power.

"We want the angel and the kid." One of the demons said, a woman, probably the leader, Bobby reasoned, since she was positioned behind the other two. He silently snuck up behind them, knife at the ready. He managed to stab the woman in the back with the knife. She screamed in both confusion and pain and a yellow light flickered behind her skin. She hit the ground with a thud as Bobby attempted to move on to the next demon. Instead he pinned Bobby to the wall easily, causing him to drop the knife. At this point Dean was shouting in fear, John was shouting in confusing and Castiel had the strangest, confused look on hi s face.

"What is that?!" The demon pinning Bobby asked his partner, motioning to the knife, now on the floor, several feet from him.

"It killed her!" Said the other one. He stared at it, dumbfounded.

Bobby could see from behind the demon pinning him that Castiel was taking action, making up for both Dean and John who were merely standing there in shock and shouting. He quickly made his way behind the other demon and jumped, just barely reaching the back of his head. There was a bright light that emanated from Castiel's eyes and then the demon's nose and mouth. The demon screamed and fell to the floor, eyes burnt out of his skull.

The other demon rounded on Cas at that point, forgetting Bobby, but was intercepted by Gabriel suddenly appearing between him and the child. The demon blinked in confusion for a second before Gabriel smirked, placing a hand on the demon's forehead. The light Bobby had seen before emanated from Gabriel this time as the demon screamed and fell. After that, there was only silence.

Gabriel was the first to break it, laughing a bit and saying. "Surprise!" As he turned to Castiel.

Castiel bit his lip and frowned, a thoughtful wrinkle forming between his brows as he processed what had just happened. He looked over at Gabriel and then to the demons on the floor and then back to Gabriel.

"Gabriel…?" He questioned accusingly. There was confusion on his face, as well as a bit of anger and quite a lot of hurt.

"The one and only." Gabriel said weakly, giving a nervous chuckle. "Long time no see, well I guess not really. Did I ever tell you you've grown a lot.?" He commented sheepishly, trying to avert the inevitable fit Castiel was going to throw.

"I don't understand." Castiel said firmly. "Why—"

"Wait a minute." John interrupted. "I thought that was Loki. Who's Gabriel?"

"An angel." Gabriel retorted hotly. "Archangel, if you want to be technical. Loki was just a cover story." He explained.

"I knew it!" Dean shouted. It echoed off the walls of the bathroom, causing everyone to look at him.

"Did you?" Gabriel asked, surprised.

"How?!" John demanded. No one was quite sure who he was asking, but Dean answered anyway.

"I don't know…" Dean said, crossing his arms. "I just knew it." He turned his gaze to the floor, refusing to talk anymore.

Dean's silence set off another long silence as everyone took everything in. Once again, Gabriel was the one to break it. "Do you mind if we move this whole conversation outside?" He said, motioning to the bathroom. "It stinks in here, and nobody's watching the baby."

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><p><strong>Ba ba ba ba! Loki is actually Gabriel. All of you saw that coming... Oh well! That isn't the only plot twist I have up my sleeve!<strong>

**(TBC...)**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: I wasn't actually planning to update this week, since I'm really really busy, but the online blackboard for my classes just went down for who knows how long, so I actually can't accomplish anything of import. (At least for school, anyway) I figured I might as well update for you guys, since I can't start studying or writing any papers until I have my rubrics.**

**Another blanket thank you to all of you who have read, reviewed, favorited, and followed. It's very nice to see so many people enjoying my story. (Especially since I'm getting really discouraged in English class. The professor doesn't seem too fond of my writing style .)**

**Keep reviewing! It's fun to see your reactions! and please enjoy!**

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><p>Sammy was crying by the time Gabriel, John, Bobby, Dean and Cas all made it outside. John thought it was odd that his cry was not being muffled by the Impala's closed windows until he saw the broken window in the passenger side door. He looked over at Gabriel, who shrugged, and then Bobby who ducked his head and gave him a guilty frown. Gabriel suddenly disappeared from the group, only to reappear inside the car, pulling Sammy out of his seat. He then disappeared again and reappeared holding the baby at arms' length and turning his head away.<p>

"No wonder he's crying, he smells worse than the bathroom!" He exclaimed, handing him off to John who got into the back of the Impala for the diaper bag shortly after. While John was changing Sammy, Bobby decided to come up with a game plan.

"We still need to go see that psychic." Bobby said, plopping himself down at a picnic table. He was followed by Dean, Castiel and Gabriel. Ever since Gabriel had made the big reveal Bobby had noticed Castiel pointedly refusing to look at the archangel.

"Why? You know what the deal is and it's dangerous to go into that town right now." Gabriel said, crossing his arms and adopting an expression akin to pouting.

"I want to check on her. She's a psychic, if the demons pick up on that they'll be on her in a second." Bobby said sternly. "And how can I trust that you're telling us the truth?" Bobby accused, Gabriel rolled his eyes and looked away.

"Thought slaying some demons would be enough for you, but nooooo…" He muttered under his breath. Castiel sighed and set his chin on the table.

"You okay there, kid?" Bobby asked, looking over at him.

"I thought I would feel happy to see Gabriel again." Castiel said, crossing his arms on the table and resting his head on them. "Instead all I feel is mild annoyance and betrayal." He said honestly.

"Ouch." Gabriel remarked, making a mock wince. "That smarts, kid." He placed a hand over his heart. "Right there."

"Good." Castiel said, looking away petulantly.

Bobby smirked a little, angels or not, watching two ancient and supernatural beings arguing like children was entertaining.

"Wipe that smile off your face right now, Singer, or I'll wipe it off for you." Gabriel said indignantly.

Throughout this exchange, Dean kept casting furtive glances at both Gabriel and Castiel, brow furrowing. Bobby spotted him and raised an eyebrow; Dean shook his head in embarrassment and looked down, catching both Gabriel's and Castiel's attention.

"What is wrong, Dean?" Castiel questioned, placing a hand on his shoulder. Dean looked up to Castiel and then to Gabriel.

"Why are you so mad at each other?" He asked confusedly. Gabriel balked at him.

"He's mad at me!" Gabriel said defensively. He pointed an accusing finger at Cas. His childish face adopting an injured expression.

"He lied to me." Castiel said, looking at his hands.

"Yeah, and you lied to John and Bobby, you're not so high and mighty." Gabriel argued. Castiel frowned and tears welled up in his eyes. He rubbed at them with a fist, frustrated by his unchecked emotions.

"Only 'cause I didn't want to get you in trouble!" He shouted childishly. He wiped violently at his eyes, trying to keep the tears from showing.

"I don't owe you any explanations!" Gabriel defaulted, trying to play himself as a calm and reasonable adult, but his voice rose in volume.

"Yes, you do!" Castiel argued back.

"No, I don't!" Gabriel shouted back, abandoning acting like an adult in favor of arguing. They began bickering in a different language, oblivious to Bobby and Dean.

Within minutes, Castiel was standing up in his seat, attempting to be equal height with Gabriel, which honestly, wasn't very hard. Gabriel was standing too and they were exchanging quick and heated words between them in that strange language of theirs. Finally, seemingly having enough, Gabriel straightened his back and puffed his chest out a bit; Bobby and Dean could feel a shift in the area as Castiel watched Gabriel flare all six of his wings. He attempted to do the same, but his two downy ones did not even come close to Gabriel's might. He deflated a bit, unable to match the display, but stood strong. Gabriel took a deep breath.

"_Stop being a fool, Castiel. I did what I had to do! I do not owe you anything. Remember your place." _He shouted. Bobby looked startled and confused, unsure of Gabriel had said. Castiel flinched at the last part, deflating again. More tears filled his eyes and he turned swiftly, retreating into the woman's bathroom, as the men's was full of demon corpses. Dean took off after him, but was still a few feet behind. Gabriel calmed then, beginning to look at least slightly ashamed of himself. Whatever he had said, he obviously hadn't meant to say it.

"What'd you do?" Bobby asked accusingly. Gabriel glared at him, but otherwise said nothing, then disappeared. This left Bobby to deal with the aftermath of Castiel and Gabriel's little spat.

"Figures." He said, standing up and walking over the woman's restroom. John, who had finished changing Sammy shortly before the fight and was too stunned to really do anything, but watch from afar, jogged behind him carrying Sammy.

By the time the three of them made it into the bathroom, they could hear Castiel crying from inside the bathroom and Dean attempting to calm him. They opened the door just in time to hear Dean say. "It's okay, Cas! He's just a big butt face!" If anything, this made the sobs from the stall he was standing outside of grow louder.

Dean looked over at them helplessly and regarded John guiltily. John wormed his way between Dean and the stall and knocked on it. Castiel's volume decreased, but he still cried, then sniffled, then cried some more.

"Cas, buddy, why don't you come out?" John requested gently.

"N-n-n-no." Castiel sniffled from behind the stall door. "I d-d-don't wa-wanna." This was as childish sounding as John had ever heard Castiel.

"Gabriel's gone now, so you don't have to worry about him." John reasoned.

"I-I'm not w-wo-woried about Gabriel." Castiel stuttered. He was a little calmer now.

"Then why won't you come out?" It was Dean who asked this time.

"Because…" Castiel trailed off, sniffling.

John sighed. As a father, he was completely used to this. "Because why, Castiel?"

"B-Because, angels aren't s-s-supposed to c-c-cry." Castiel said. His sniffling got more pronounced. "They're s-s-supposed to be s-s-strong…" He explained and then started sobbing again. "I-I really t-t-tried not t-t-to…" He sounded incredibly apologetic.

Bobby crossed his arms in a huff. Castiel was the most put together out of the entire Winchester family, minus Sammy, but he didn't really count. If Castiel started breaking down, the entire family would. "Kid, I don't know what those angels or whatevers have been tellin' you, but you're young, right?"

"Y-yeah." Castiel replied. "I'm a f-f-fledgling."

Bobby looked at John questioningly. "The hell's that mean?" He mouthed silently. How young was Castiel, fledgling was the term used for baby birds just learning to fly. Castiel wasn't a baby angel, was he?

John shrugged helpfully. Bobby rolled his eyes and said. "Well, if you're a fledgling, then that means it's okay to cry."

Castiel hiccuped and snuffled a bit. "R-really?" He asked. There was a hopeful tone in his voice. It pulled at Bobby's heart and he shook his head to remove the sentimental thoughts.

"Yeah. It's okay to cry whenever, just don't go doing it in front of people when you're older. They'll look at you funny." Bobby said. John raised an eyebrow at him, but he ignored it. He wasn't going to have a bunch of angsty, emotionally stunted kids on his hands. They could do that when they were teenagers and hopefully out of his hair.

Castiel slowly inched the stall door open and peeked his head through. Dean took advantage of this and grabbed him into a hug, squeezing tightly. "I'm sorry your big brother is a butt face, big brothers are butt faces sometimes though." He said guiltily.

"It's okay." Castiel said, patting Dean on the back.

"What'd he say to you anyway?" Bobby asked, crossing his arms. "It had to be worse than a couple mean names."

"He reminded me of his place and of my place." Castiel said truthfully, looking at his feet. "He has never done that before, and it was shocking."

"What is 'your place'?" John asked curiously.

"Firstly, I am a fledgling, which places me below all of the adult angels. When I am fully grown, I will be below the archangels." Castiel explained. "I'm supposed to respect and obey the archangels. However, I was not doing either with Gabriel, so he reminded me of what my duty was."

"You guys are brothers, he shouldn't be reminding you of anything." John said angrily. "As far as I'm concerned, you're more fit to be in charge than he is." He said, patting Cas on the head.

Castiel looked surprised and distressed. "Don't say that. The archangels are in charge because Father put them in charge."

"He made an awful decision." Bobby said truthfully. "One of em's already done and quit his job."

Castiel seemed thoughtful about this, but didn't say anything. Bobby continued. "If you're done crying, let's get going. We're already late for our appointment and I don't want her to worry too much."

Everyone seemed to come to the general consensus that this was indeed a good idea and were all loaded up in the Impala. John drove this time, casting mournful glances at his smashed window, despite Bobby's repeated assurance that he would fix it.

They arrived at the psychic's house about an hour later, and Bobby didn't like the vibe he was getting from the house. John turned to ask Castiel if he was feeling anything strange, but he was curled up against Dean in the backseat asleep, so he didn't bother.

"John, keep the kids in the car." Bobby said and handed the demon killing knife to John, moving to get out of the car. "Anyone approaches the car, yell 'christo' and if their eyes flash black, stab them." John nodded firmly, grabbing the knife from Bobby.

"What are you going to do?" John asked. "Are they there?"

"Don't know yet." Bobby admitted. "But I've got a bad feeling."

"Be careful." John said.

"Keep those kids safe." Bobby commanded, then grabbed a shotgun out of the back and headed into the house.

John watched cautiously from the Impala as Bobby entered the house. He held the knife tightly in his hand, fiddling slightly with the handle.

"Daddy, what's happening?" Dean's fearful voice rose up from the backseat. John turned his head to look at him and he could see Dean was clutching Castiel's hoodie tightly. The fabric bunched up sharply around his fingers, emphasizing his tight grip. Castiel stirred slightly, but dropped back off, adjusting himself so that his head was now resting on Dean's chest.

"Bobby's just going in to check to make sure everything is safe." John explained, trying to make his voice sound soothing. In reality, he sounded unsure. Giving up on comforting Dean, he turned around to watch the front door of the house. When he turned his head however, there was someone peeking their head in through the window at him. He started and shouted 'christo', but that only earned him an eye roll.

"If I were a demon, you would be dead already." The person, well, kid, said with a thick British accent. The kid in question looked to be more of a teenager, with a mop of shaggy blonde hair on his head. He wore a thin and loose t-shirt that advertised some band John had never heard of and on his face he wore the most self-assured smirk John had ever seen on someone that age.

"Who're you?!" John shouted, leaning back and brandishing the knife.

"Balthazar." The kid said pompously. "I'm an angel and Cas' friend." He explained, sweeping his hair back out of his face.

"Okay, assume I believe you. What do you want?" John said, not lowering the knife.

"I'm warning you to get yourselves away from this place." The teen said. His face adopted a darker expression. "There are demons here and angels are soon to follow."

"Why are all of you warning us about demons when you haven't done it before?" John asked. His tone held a mix of fear and suspicion.

"Because demons want to kill you, and I know you don't want that to happen," Balthazar said, somewhat sarcastically. "And the angels want to take Cas from you and I don't think either you or Cas want that."

"Why?" John persisted. Balthazar rolled his eyes.

"Because the Father is missing right now." Balthazar explained, as if this were old news. "And they want to know what Cas knows about His disappearance."

"Cas knows about this?" John asked, casting a glance back at the aforementioned angel and Dean. Balthazar followed his gaze and grinned.

"There's my little brother!" He said fondly. "All tired out too. How cute!" He said enthusiastically. Both Dean and John grimaced. Balthazar ignored it and addressed Dean. "You must be Dean."

Dean didn't say anything but nodded. Balthazar smiled. "You're going to be very important in the future." He said, winking. Dean made a confused face.

"You can see the future?" He asked in awe.

"Nope, I just know the prophecy." Balthazar said offhandedly.

"What prophecy?" John demanded. This angel was very quickly getting on his nerves.

Balthazar looked at him and frowned. "The one about the seals and the end of the world. Duh. What other prophecy would he be in?" At John's confused look, Balthazar blanched. "Oh… You weren't supposed to know about that." He backed up from the car slightly.

"Know about what?" John demanded, growing angrier by the second.

"It's secret. I can't tell you any more than that." Balthazar said firmly. "Only angels can know, technically I'm not even supposed to know."

"Balthazar, what prophecy?" Castiel's voice drifted sleepily from the backseat. "Father only told me to protect them."

"Oh Cassy…" Balthazar sighed. "It's not important right now. If things remain as they are, it may never matter." He said this slightly absently.

"What does that mean?" John interrupted before Cas could say anything.

"The events that lead up to the completion of the prophecy aren't matching up." Balthazar explained, abandoning the idea of keeping the prophecy a secret. "Quite simply, everything's out of order, or hasn't happened yet."

"Like what?" John pressed.

Balthazar looked around himself before leaning in and saying. "The righteous man is not supposed to meet his angel until he is raised from Hell." He looked over at Dean and Cas when he said this. "And for some reason the blood of Azazel has diluted in your youngest." He frowned. "Somehow Father has gone and messed everything up."

"Wait a minute." John demanded, grabbing the angel by handful of his t-shirt. "What do you mean Sammy has 'the blood of Azazel' in him? Who's Azazel?" He shook him slightly, voice growing louder.

"Calm down, calm down! It won't matter until later anyways!" Balthazar tried to reason, dodging the subject.

"It sure as hell matters right now." John said roughly.

Balthazar looked over to Castiel for support, but to his dismay, Castiel looked curious and severe, a look that Balthazar never liked to see on the fledgling. It meant he wasn't going to let Balthazar leave without knowing the truth. He'd seen the same look when Balthazar found out Gabriel had left. John shook him and he returned his gaze to the human.

"Azazel is…" He looked to Castiel again, who still looked the same despite the double check. He sighed, defeated. "Azazel is the one who killed your wife, John Winchester." Balthazar closed his eyes and braced himself for a rough shaking, or an attack of harsh words or even John to call him a liar, but to his immense surprise, John released him.

The man was staring blankly at the angel, allowing the information to full process. Then he uttered dangerously. "What is Azazel?"

The human looked so full of rage that even Balthazar was afraid for himself. "Uh… Um… Azazel… He's… He's a demon, a powerful one." He stuttered out. He had just jumped head first into a very, very dangerous topic. He'd also probably changed the future, in what way, he was unsure. Raphael was going to kill him, if Michael didn't get to him first. Inias was right. His big mouth was going to be the death of him.

"Where is he? How can I find him?" John demanded. Balthazar visibly gulped rubbing the back of his neck.

"I don't know where he is!" Balthazar said, flinching back from the infuriated man. "There's no way I could know!"

"Do you know how I could find him?" John repeated through clinched teeth.

"Ah… Er… You could try summoning him. All you have to really know is a name…" Balthazar floundered, trying to placate the increasingly wrathful human.

"How?" John asked as he leaned closer to Balthazar's retreating from.

"Uh… I…I don't know!" Balthazar shouted and disappeared, a whoosh of wind blowing through the car window.

"Where'd he go?!" John asked no one in particular as he shoved his head through the car window to look for any sign of the angel.

"He flew away. You scared him." Castiel said. He had that same thoughtful frown John had seen earlier, regarding Dean with a kind of concerned interest.

"Do you have any idea what he was talking about?" John asked, moving his attention to Castiel. He was careful of his tone; Castiel wasn't any use to him if he had an attack.

"I have heard of many prophecies." Castiel said. He looked down to his hands, thinking. "I don't believe I've ever been told of the one Balthazar spoke about."

John tapped his fingers on the steering wheel nervously. "I don't like this." He muttered. He could see Cas cock his head to the side in the rear view mirror.

"There is nothing you can do." Cas said sagely before he seemingly dropped off to sleep again.

Dean who had been silent during the entire exchange finally spoke up. "Daddy… Azazel killed mommy." He stated. A little crease formed between his eyebrows. "And he hurt Sammy."

"Yeah. That's what Balthazar says." John affirmed, looking down at his lap.

"What are you going to do?" Dean asked. There was a note of fearfulness in his voice, and he clutched to Cas' hoody even tighter.

"First I'm going to find Azazel." John began. His voice was dark and sinister and made Dean's hands gather more of the fabric beneath his hands. "Then I'm going to kill him." John said honestly.

Dean nodded, burying his face in Castiel's messy hair and sniffling. They both looked up when Bobby came back out of the house and made his way up to the window.

"Christo!" John shouted at him. Both Bobby and Dean gave him the same confused look. John looked down sheepishly. "Hey, you can never be too careful." Bobby rolled his eyes and shrugged.

"Whatever. I need you to come in there with me." He stated. "There's something I gotta show you that the kids can't see."

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><p><strong>TBC<strong>

**(As long as exams don't literally kill me you will be getting an update soon. Probably next week.)**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: The website that I use to do my homework is down for an hour, so I figured why not update?**

**Uh... Some notes, because people seem confused. The psychic they planned to visit is not Pamela. I'm sorry for any confusion about that. I originally wanted it to be, but I don't know how old she is canonically, or how old she would be at this time. **

**Thanks again for all the reviews, favorites, follows, etc. And I hope you enjoy this new chapter!**

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><p>Getting the kids out of the car was a fiasco. Especially with an insufferably impatient Bobby breathing down the necks of anyone who dawdled. Bobby explained that the house was clear and that they could leave the kids in the entryway of the house, but he needed John to come upstairs. No matter how many times John asked him, Bobby would not reveal what he needed to show him. He only said that the kids couldn't see it, whatever it was.<p>

Adding to the already tense mood, was a sleepy and equally grumpy Castiel. John figured it was either the house or the earlier activities that had tuckered him out so badly. He was absolutely livid when they asked him to wake up and get out of the car. Whenever Bobby would instruct him to do something, he'd snap at him with some smart aleck response that would, in turn, set Bobby off. John managed to get their exchanges to stop by agreeing to carry Castiel in rather than making him walk. Castiel didn't seem pleased by this, but a desperate look from Dean got him to agree. He huffed and pouted the whole way to the house.

Once inside Bobby helped set the kids up in the living room. It was eerily quiet in the house, there wasn't another soul within its walls. Castiel wrinkled his nose as he was set on the couch and he grabbed a hold of John's shirt before he could pull away. Castiel leaned into John's ear and whispered as quietly as he could.

"There is so much blood here." He sounded drained and weary. A quick look at Castiel told John that he wasn't truly awake. His eyes were open, but they had the glossy quality to them that John saw when he woke Dean up in the middle of the night. Despite this, John pressed for answers.

"What do you mean?" John asked, holding a teetering Castiel by the shoulders.

"Malevolent…" The fledgling trailed off. He furrowed his brow and looked off into space, as if listening to something disagreeable.

"Yes, I know, Jimmy." He said aloud. This drew Bobby's attention.

"Who the hell's he talking to?" Bobby asked. John shrugged at him a little too quickly.

"Imaginary friend maybe?" It was a weak cover, but Bobby didn't seem to notice. Castiel continued babbling on distantly, fighting with someone who John assumed to be his vessel and Bobby assumed to be some imaginary friend.

"I would tell them to leave, but they won't listen." Castiel explained very firmly to the ceiling. "They don't feel it." This statement seemed to satisfy whoever Castiel was talking to and he dropped off to sleep again.

John and Bobby exchanged looks and then looked over to Dean who was surprisingly calm about the whole thing.

"Dean, do you know who he was talking to?" Bobby asked the child. Dean looked over to him and frowned.

"The person who's there when he isn't." Dean explained simply. Bobby looked over to John, who had a look guilt on his face.

"What the hell is he talking about?" Bobby said for the second time, looking confused and frustrated.

"His vessel." John said absently. When Bobby gave him a blank look he stuttered. "W-Well. He's possessed someone."

"Like a demon." Bobby asked. He reached into his pocket and John feared he meant to pull out a knife.

"No… Yes…" John thought for a moment, trying his best to make Castiel sound like the farthest thing from demon that ever existed. "He has to ask permission first." He said, hoping against all hope that his statement made it better.

"And that makes it okay?" Bobby asked angrily. "He's possessing a kid. He probably didn't know what he was getting into."

"Goddamnit, Bobby. Give him a break. The damn kid he's possessing might not have known what he was getting into, but he also wasn't in the best of situations." John said, trying to get Bobby to catch what he was hinting at. "At least now he's not in that situation anymore."

Bobby frowned darkly at John, obviously not approving of the reasoning, but he didn't say anymore. It wasn't any business who the Winchesters chose as allies.

"Whatever, John. Just follow me. I still have to show you something." Bobby said as he headed upstairs. John cast one last glance at Dean who was guiding Cas' head to rest on his shoulder. He was whispering something to Cas as well, but John couldn't make out what it was. He gave up and followed Bobby up the stairs.

When he made it to the top, Bobby had already disappeared into one of the rooms. He looked around trying to guess which one it was when he heard Bobby call for him.

"In here, John." Bobby said. It sounded like he had something over his mouth, muffling his voice. When John entered the room that Bobby was in, he knew immediately why. The stench of blood was suffocatingly thick in the air. John dared to look around, finding Bobby standing with a cloth held to his mouth and nose closest to the far wall.

The room itself looked as if something exploded in it. There was blood all over the place, splattered on the walls, furniture and ceiling. John didn't dare to think about what or _who_ had become the red splotches across the room. At that moment, John was intensely glad for his cast iron stomach. If he had been a lesser man, the smell mixed with the imagery would have been enough to make him sick. He looked to Bobby, brows knitted together in confusion.

Bobby didn't say a word, but pointed silently to the wall he was standing by. There, in hastily smeared bloody letters was the name Winchester.

"What?" John questioned.

"They knew we were coming, and they left a message." Bobby explained. "I don't know what they want. If they had wanted you dead, they'd have been here when we arrived." He had a severely grim look on his face. "I ain't accusing Castiel of anything or that other angel. But they were the only ones who knew we were coming." Bobby didn't mention the psychic. It was painfully obvious that she had become their 'message'.

"N-no. Cas wouldn't have told anyone." John denied angrily. He was almost offended that Bobby would suggest Castiel would do such a thing.

Bobby shook his head and crossed his arms. "That's not what Gabriel told me." John took on a defensive posture, his back straight as a rod. Bobby put his hands up trying to placate the other man. "I'm not saying he's bad, John. Gabriel told me they brainwash em' in Heaven. Cas probably thought it would be okay to tell them." He explained. John didn't relax. "Gabriel didn't want us to come. I bet the other angels didn't either. This is probably a message telling us not to disobey them again."

"Why would the angels feel the need to do this anyway?" John questioned. Bobby shut his mouth and crossed his arms, an invitation for John to prove him wrong. "While you were in the house another angel 'visited' us. If they wanted something, they'd come and get it. They don't need to threaten us."

"Another angel what?!" Bobby asked. "And you didn't tell me until now?"

John bristled. "I don't need to tell you everything that happens when you're not around." John said childishly and dangerously. "He told me the identity of the demon that killed my wife." Bobby didn't speak for a few moments, staring wide eyed at John. John took the opportunity to elaborate. "He said that everything was all part of some prophecy, but things are going wrong now and the prophecy might not happen."

Bobby's brows furrowed in thought at this. "Gabriel told me that the demons are going crazy. Are they trying to get whatever prophecy this is back on track?" He muttered this more to himself, but John nodded anyway.

"I think so. This is a warning from the demons, not the angels." John reasoned. "We need to get more information on the prophecy." John said, and then his demeanor got a tad darker as he said. "And we need to summon the demon who killed my wife. I want to kill that bastard."

Bobby nodded gravely. "Okay, but not here." He said frowning. "I don't want to spend any more time in this house." John nodded and they made their way downstairs, making sure there was no trace of blood on their clothes or shoes, as not to scare the kids.

As they made their way into the living room they were greeted by another figure. This one was tall and dark, with broad shoulders and John noticed belatedly that he was holding Castiel. John ran at him, fists raised, but was stopped by some invisible force as the figure put a hand up.

"Calm, John Winchester. I have no intention of hurting him." The man, demon, angel or other said. He regarded John and then Bobby, frozen by the stairs, with an amused smirk. John's eyes were drawn to the couch where Dean was slumped over, seemingly asleep. The man took notice and lowered his hand, allowing John to sprint to his son. "Do not fear, he is just asleep." John confirmed this with a quick press of two fingers to Dean's neck. The pulse he felt underneath was calm and Dean's breathing was deep and easy. He was indeed deeply asleep.

Bobby pulled the demon killing knife out of his pocket swiftly, preparing to lunge at the man, but was stopped by the amused glint in the figure's eyes. "I am no demon, Singer. That knife will have no effect."

"Then what are ya?" Bobby said, lowering the knife just a fraction. "And what do ya want with the kid?"

"My name is Raphael." The man said. "I am an archangel. I came to insure this fledgling's safety and that you were also unharmed." He said righteously with a smile, but there wasn't any warmth in it. "I see you care for this one like he is your own. Sadly, I will have to take him away." He didn't sound very regretful at all and regarded Castiel's unconscious form with a hint of contempt.

"I won't let you." Bobby said as he picked up on the look in the archangel's eyes. "Cas is a good kid, and the Winchester's need him."

"Castiel is not a child." Raphael said sternly and angrily. John found himself rooted in his spot by Dean's side, unable to move again. "He is an angel, and he must return home. Regardless of what the Winchester's need, the events of the prophecy must take place, however delayed they are now." He said, gathering Castiel closer to himself.

"What's Castiel have to do with the prophecy?" Bobby questioned. He hadn't got any details about it, but he figured John might know something. He just had to eek the information out for him.

"That is no concern of yours." Raphael said. Bobby cursed inwardly. "Now instruct whatever creature you have control of to allow me to leave."

Bobby could see John turn to him in confusion and Bobby tried to keep his face carefully blank. Raphael thought they had some kind of control over him. They could use this.

"Not until you tell us why you need to take Castiel away." Bobby said sternly. Raphael's face twisted in anger.

"That is none of your concern, human." Raphael spat the word human like it was some sort of profanity.

"Then you can't leave here with him." Bobby said cheekily, adding a smirk to his facade, further irritating the archangel.

"I will tell you this." Raphael said. "Prolonged exposure to Castiel's grace as well as that of another has diluted the demon blood within your child Samuel." After saying this Raphael cast a disgusted glance at the Sammy. John flinched defensively, but otherwise couldn't move. "In order for the prophecy to come to pass, the blood must not leave his system. Castiel must be taken from you, despite Father's wishes." He said. Bobby frowned. Sam had demon blood in him? And what could that possibly have to do with the prophecy?

A slow clap from the stairwell drew every conscious person's attention. There, sitting lazily at the bottom of the stairs, was Gabriel. Raphael grimaced, cradling Castiel a mite closer.

"So it is you preventing my leave." Raphael commented with unconcealed disgust. "I was wondering where you had gone, _brother._" Raphael sneered. Gabriel just rolled his eyes.

"Nice to see you too, Raphael. Do all your long lost brothers get this kind of greeting?" Gabriel said, standing from the stairs. His demeanor took on an almost business-like air. "You've got two options, Raphy. Hand Castiel over and you can leave or I take Castiel and make you leave." He said this threateningly, sauntering easily up to the other archangel.

"Gabriel, if you attempt to take Castiel I will not hesitate to smite you." Raphael said threateningly. Despite his words, he backed away as Gabriel got closer.

"Really, Ralph? Don't lie to me. I know you aren't any more powerful than you were the last time I saw you." He stopped when the backs of Raphael's knees hit the couch and smirked. "And I kicked your ass then too."

"Come no closer. I may not be able to smite you…" Raphael trailed off. He knew Gabriel held no love for these humans, he couldn't, but Castiel. Castiel could be his leverage. "Or I will smite Castiel."

"Shut up." Gabriel said, quirking an eyebrow at him and frowning. "I know how you work. If you were allowed to smite Castiel, you would have done it." Gabriel smirked knowingly. "No. You need him for later, if the prophecy's gonna happen."

Raphael said nothing, but stood resigned to whatever fate Gabriel had planned for him. He did not let go of Castiel, though. The little angel was too precious to the plan for him to simply let go.

"I'm actually impressed." Gabriel commented. He plunked himself down in an arm chair adjacent to Raphael and crossed his legs. "You guys are all thinking for yourselves for once." He said happily. "Of course, it's probably Michael doing the thinkin' but it's still nice to see." He leaned forward, frowning. "You know dear old Dad has no intention of allowing that prophecy to happen anymore."

"As it is written, it shall come to pass." Raphael said in a self-righteous voice.

"Tell it to the prophets, Raph." Gabriel said, waving the statement away with a hand. "Even God can change His mind. He must've looked forward, saw a wrench in the works." He leaned back. "Plans get scrapped, Raph. Why is that so hard for you and Mike to understand?" He asked distantly.

"In the absence of God, Michael is in charge, what he says shall happen." Raphael said sternly. "And he has instructed Castiel's removal from the Winchesters."

"And I'm the Messenger of God, and I say Dad wants Cas with the Winchesters." Gabriel shot back. "I'm not joking either. These words come straight from Father Himself." He stood and walked to Raphael. Although he was two heads and a half shorter than Raphael, he still managed to look threatening. "You would not go against the words of the Father, would you Ralph?"

Raphael had the tact to look conflicted, glancing between Gabriel and the fledgling sleeping in his arms. "Gabriel. You must tell me where Father is. I must hear this for myself." He whispered. "Michael must be told."

"No. Raphael, even archangels need faith." Gabriel explained. He had pity in his eyes. "Just trust me, okay?"

"No." And like lightening, Raphael had his angel blade out and in Gabriel's side. Gabriel managed to dodge the brunt of the attack, stumbling sideways and away from his brother. He plastered his hands to his side, blood leaking out between his fingers. Raphael took a moment to set Castiel on the floor before charging after him, angel blade raised. "Defiance to Michael's word will be punished by death!" He shouted angrily.

Gabriel put up his bloody hands to show he was unarmed. "Woah! This doesn't have to be a fight!" He said, dodging another stab from Raphael's sword. "I don't want to fight you!" He barely dodged another one of Raphael's attacks, wincing as Raphael's blade embedded itself in the wall where his head used to be. "You're going to choose Michael's will over Dad's?!" He asked desperately. Raphael said nothing, but continued to try and kill his brother.

John and Bobby watched the fight between the archangels, frozen in shock. It was only until after John had to move out of the way to avoid tripping Gabriel that he realized Raphael no longer had him rooted to the spot. He quickly gathered Castiel, Dean and Sam's carrier as Bobby made his way to their position. Gabriel looked at them and motioned for them to leave, a wave of energy following the movement of his hand and simultaneously pushed Raphael away and sent John and the kids stumbling towards the door.

_Once you're out of town, I'll meet you at your motel. Don't go home. _John heard Gabriel's voice echo through his head and looked at the archangel questioningly. Gabriel gave him a desperate look before Raphael let off a lightning bolt, the electricity catching on the couch and setting it aflame. _Go! _With that command, John felt himself being hurled out the door of the house, only to hear it slam shut behind him.

Bobby recovered before he did, grabbing Sam's carrier and John's arm. "Move it!" He shouted, steering the group towards the car.

As they pulled away they watched the house go up in flames, the sound of thunder and piercing screeches echoing through the once quiet street.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: So I thought you all hated me after that last chapter because I posted it and waited for someone to do SOMETHING and I never got a notification for some form of activity, so I was really worried. It turns out though, that my gmail account thinks my notifications from Fanfiction are spam, so it filters them into my spam box. Too bad it doesn't do that for my Facebook notifications -_- **

**Anyway, I've since checked my spam box and looked at all your wonderful reviews and reactions and favorites and alerts and whatnots that I enjoy so much and here is another chapter.**

**ALSO REGARDING A PLOT HOLE THAT IS NOT A PLOT HOLE, BUT WON'T REALLY BE EXPLAINED: I believe that at least two of my lovely readers mentioned that Raphael and Michael overheard God's order to send Castiel to earth in chapter one. This won't really be explained (well it will kind of, but not really) So I want to make it clear that the reason they didn't do anything initially is that God was still there and His word is more important to them than their own personal desires. However, with God gone, Michael is in charge and Michael wants the apocalypse on track. (His reasoning for this will be explained in chapter 30 or 31, I can't remember which one it is right now) God also did not leave any additional orders when He left, so Michael feels like he has free reign. Sorry if this kind of spoils some stuff for you (and if it's still confusing I'll try to clarify further) but I didn't want to lose any readers to an apparent plot hole. There's probably about 40,000 of them already since my plot is based off a piece of notebook paper listing what's supposed to happen in each chapter that I wrote out two years ago, but I don't believe that the plot hole discussed above is actually a plot hole. **

**The 48 Hour Film Festival for October is coming up tomorrow and I'm going to try and get this in before that happens. If it does not happen, then I am sorry for making you wait.**

**Gosh this is a long author's note...**

**Please enjoy!**

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><p>John wouldn't stop driving. As soon as they got on the highway and out of that accursed town, he gunned the gas, shooting the Impala down the road at well above the speed limit. He'd shoot worried glances back at Dean and Cas, but found relief when after an hour of them driving, they finally stirred. Since then, John hadn't stopped, and it had been well over five hours. The car was completely silent, save for Sammy's discontented fussing. Dean did his best to shush him, but didn't have much luck.<p>

John never asked what happened after he and Bobby went upstairs. He could guess, Raphael must have appeared in that unsettling way angels did, demanded Cas and then forced Dean and Castiel into unconsciousness when they didn't comply. John grit his teeth. This was disastrous. They had both Heaven and Hell on their tails and their only ally was a possibly dead archangel.

"John, you need to pull over." Bobby said, watching the signs. "We're way out of dodge and the kids need to rest."

"They can rest while I drive." John insisted, gripping the steering wheel tightly.

"We're gonna run out of gas." Bobby reasoned, trying to get John to think rationally. "What happens then? We'll be stranded on the side of the road."

"Mr. Winchester, Gabriel will take care of Raphael. I do not sense anyone following us. We can stop." Castiel bargained, trying to get the distressed man to pull over.

"No, Castiel. You didn't since Balthazar or Raphael coming. I'm sorry, but we can't trust your 'senses' anymore." John said, looking at the fledgling in the rearview mirror.

Castiel sighed and leaned his head up against the seat. "If you insist." He said sadly.

_He didn't mean it like that, Castiel. _Jimmy told him. He began stirring from the earlier excitement and hadn't been able to rest sense. Castiel could sense that he was equally as stressed.

"I should have told them." Castiel muttered quietly. "Regardless of their stubbornness."

Bobby looked back at him, a concerned frown on his face. "Who do you keep talking to?" He asked, more curiosity in his voice than malice.

"James Novak." Castiel said simply. At Bobby's bewildered look he added. "My vessel's soul."

"You are going to have to help me write a book on you angels." Bobby commented. Castiel looked at him curiously. "There isn't any hunter literature on angels and if your kind is going to be a problem, we need to know as much about you as possible."

Castiel buried his face in his hands, suppressing a sigh. "We are supposed to be the watchers. We only interfere when invoked with prayer." He turned his head towards the window and watched the scenery rush by for a few seconds, the blurring of colors making him dizzy. "Why have we strayed so far from that?"

Bobby didn't say anything to that, but returned to watching the road rush under them as John abused the gas pedal.

Meanwhile Gabriel stood among the burnt remains of the, sadly deceased, psychic's home. He had an angel blade in one hand, the tip spattered with blood and grace, and the other held his aching side. Blood dribbled out between his fingers in a steady stream. Gabriel was sure Raphael had managed to puncture down to his grace. He smiled wryly, at least Raphael looked worse. After Gabriel had managed to wound one of his wings, Raphael fled. At that point, Gabriel had two options, follow Raphael's trail of blood and grace to who knows where, or track down the Winchesters. Either way it was going to hurt.

"Man. This sucks." Gabriel said, gingerly pulling his hand away from the wound Raphael had inflicted. It bled freely, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that it also glowed a soft blue and emitted an almost inaudible ringing noise, Gabriel's true and injured form peeking out from beneath the layers of his human vessel.

He placed his hand back on the wound and thought over his predicament. He could go after Raphael and possibly kill himself, or he could go after the Winchesters and reveal that he was injured. He could also go back into hiding, but he'd already let Cas down enough times, and if he disappeared, then the Winchesters had no ally. Decision made, he took off, disappearing with a puff of ash and the sound of spattering blood.

John pulled over after he had almost fallen asleep at the wheel. The only thing that kept him from completely dropping off was both Bobby's and Castiel's distressed, simultaneous shout when he swerved into the lane for oncoming traffic. No one was there, thankfully, but it was enough that Bobby glared at him until he pulled into the parking lot of some generic motel. Bobby kept giving him that disapproving glare until they had their rooms and were unpacked. John wasn't sure if he was entertained or scared by how easily Bobby scared the motel clerk into making sure their rooms were side by side. He eventually settled on being too tired to care.

"I drive tomorrow." Bobby said firmly, turning the key in his room's door. John just nodded, carrying Sammy's carrier and letting go of Dean's hand to unlock the door. When they opened the door, they were greeted by a sudden and very loud crashing sound, followed by a thump and a moan. John had his knife out of his pocket almost immediately, pointing it in the direction of the noise. He dropped Sammy's carrier by the door and cautiously stalked into the room. Behind one of the beds, tangled with a now broken lamp, lay Gabriel.

"Just me." Gabriel said reassuringly, trying to pick himself up from his own mess. When he was half-way up off the floor, John gasped in alarm. There was a growing puddle of blood underneath the archangel. Gabriel had his hands clamped over a spot on his left side, teeth clenched. "I… Uh… Raphael was a bit more skilled with his blade than I remember." He said sheepishly, when he noticed John's gaze glued to his side.

"Do you need help?" John asked. He belatedly noticed Castiel making his way over to Gabriel's position worriedly.

"Gabriel, you are bleeding!" Castiel stated in alarm making his way over to his older brother. Dean stayed back with Sammy, watching all of them with a worried look.

"Is Gabriel gonna be okay?" Dean called, rocking on his heels, concern for Gabriel not quite outweighing his protectiveness for Sammy.

"I'll be fine, Dean-o!" Gabriel said, laughing, and then wincing as it pulled his side. Castiel kneeled next to him, open palms hovering over the wounded area. "Stop it, Cas, you can't heal this." And then at Castiel's shocked and worried look, he said "Don't worry! I'll be fine. I just need a night or two to heal!"

Castiel didn't seem by any means consoled by this. "Let me see." He insisted, trying to peel Gabriel's hands away from the wound. "I want to see." He looked at Gabriel with a pleading expression when he found that, despite his injuries, Gabriel's strength far outweighed his own.

"I'll go grab the first aid kit." John said, realizing his presence wasn't really doing anyone any good. He headed out the back door, stopping to instruct Dean to keep Sammy by the door.

After the door shut, Castiel began to question Gabriel in hurried Enochian. Gabriel stubbornly pressed against his chest when Castiel forced his way into the archangel's space. It only seemed to make Castiel more frantic when he left a hand print of faintly glowing blood and grace on Castiel's hoody. He pushed more frantically at Gabriel's other hand, shouting questions and exclamations.

"Dean, when your dad comes in, tell him I did this because Castiel wouldn't calm down!" Gabriel shouted over Castiel's frantic voice. Dean looked at him in confusion, as did Castiel, until Gabriel placed two bloodied fingers on Castiel's temple. The younger angel gave him a somewhat betrayed look before going limp, his head landing in Gabriel's lap.

"Hey!" Dean shouted at him in protective anger, getting ready to run at Gabriel and batter him with his fists. He was stopped by John opening the door, followed by Bobby.

"What happened?" Bobby demanded, before he even saw Gabriel on the floor.

"Where's Castiel?" John demanded, glancing around the room frantically.

"Right here." Gabriel answered, motioning towards his lap. "Help me with him. I've only got one hand right now." He said as John anxiously rushed over to where Castiel lay sleeping in Gabriel's lap.

"What happened?" John demanded. Gabriel rolled his eyes and explained Castiel's behavior as John picked up the angel with one hand and deposited him on one of the beds. Dean dragged Sammy's carrier over to his spot and plopped himself on the bed. When he looked over to see Gabriel, he blanched when he saw the amount of blood and hurriedly turned his attention to Castiel.

"Why is your blood glowing?" Bobby asked in curiosity. He pulled a handkerchief out of his back pocket and wiped Gabriel's bloody finger prints from Cas' face. The younger and smaller angel didn't move, breathing evenly in Gabriel's induced sleep.

"Grace is in the mix. You're lucky there's not a lot of it, or you'd be blind." Gabriel said, almost with pride. He winced when John pried his hands away from the wound and pressed a white bathroom towel to it. "Hey! That hurts!" He tried wiggling away, but found John Winchester to be persistent. "Stop it!" He demanded, pushing at John's hands and scooting backwards.

"Be still! I'm trying to stop the bleeding." John scolded. Gabriel frowned at him disapprovingly.

"I don't need your help!" He said petulantly. Bobby huffed.

"Then why are you here?" Bobby demanded, folding his arms. "Just wanted to show off your battle scars?" He asked sarcastically. Gabriel pouted at him, still fighting with John's persistent hands. He sighed. "Sit still and tell us what to do to get you to stop whistling and oozing light." He kneeled down next to Gabriel, opening up the first aid kit.

"You don't need to do anything! I just came here because I didn't want Cas to worry." Gabriel explained desperately. He managed to slap John's hands away, but soon John was back, pressing the end of the towel not soaked with blood back on the wound with a wordless scowl. "Oooooow!" Gabriel whined and slammed his hand on the ground, either in pain or frustration. "You're pressing too hard!" He accused, shooting John a childish glare.

"I have to press hard to stop the bleeding." John replied with false innocence. Gabriel looked unconvinced, but refrained from pushing at John's hands anymore.

"What do we need to do, Gabriel?" Bobby prodded again. "Because if you don't tell us, I'm going to stitch it up." He held up a needle and some dental floss as an example. Gabriel went white.

"N-no, don't stitch it up!" Gabriel pleaded, renewing his struggles to get away from John. "That's so…" He stopped himself from saying 'barbaric', as to not incur the human's wrath. "I'll heal on my own." He said firmly. Despite that statement and his greatest efforts to get John to leave him alone, the towel still remained pressed to his side. He huffed out a sigh. "Fine! Go get me some candy! Something with a lot of sugar!" Gabriel demanded through clenched teeth.

"But you aren't a trickster." Bobby said with a raised eyebrow. "Why would the shortest archangel need candy to heal?"

Gabriel glared at Bobby when he said the word 'short'."Don't question me! Just go get some!" Gabriel commanded, his voice was rather high pitched, with pain or exasperation, Bobby couldn't tell. "Coffee too, with lots of sugar. Or soda!" Gabriel added, looking somewhat thoughtful. Bobby remained in the room, arms crossed and eyebrow raised, awaiting an explanation. "Fine… Fine! I need extra energy. Sugar and caffeine are the best sources. Plus they taste good…" He said, trailing off. When Bobby didn't move he huffed angrily. "I'll heal faster and you won't have to come at me with that stupid needle!" He reasoned desperately. Bobby nodded, seemingly satisfied and left the room.

"Don't like needles?" John asked, regarding the archangel with a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Shut up. Don't forget that I can turn you purple with a snap of my fingers." Gabriel threatened half-heartedly. At the moment, the archangel in question didn't look like he could do much of anything. His skin was white and warm to the touch, and it seemed to hum with barely contained grace.

After a few minutes, Castiel began to stir, yet more evidence that Gabriel was weaker than he was eight hours previous. Castiel came to with a sigh and a yawn. He gave Dean a confused look when he opened his eyes to find Dean's nose pressed to his own.

"Gabriel put you to sleep." Dean said, without having to be asked. Castiel nodded, and sat up, looking over at his brother. Dean moved with him, but kept his gaze away from Gabriel.

"Gabriel, I was merely trying to help." He said, miffed at the archangel. However, his annoyance turned to concern as he examined Gabriel. "Gabriel, perhaps we should call Michael…" He trailed off, looking at him expectantly.

"Nope! I'm fine." Gabriel's response came out strained as John replaced his now blood soaked towel with another clean, white one. "No problem." He said, giving Castiel a thumbs up.

Castiel didn't seem convinced. He had seen angel blade wounds, albeit not often. Angel blade wounds were most often a result of carelessness during one's training. Most of the time, Raphael was called to tend to them, since he was the archangel of healing, but in severe cases, they would call Michael.

He regarded the blood soaked towel on the floor and the hand print on his hoody, nervously deciding on an answer. "Then please allow me to assist you." Castiel said pleadingly. He was not about to pretend his meager powers could completely heal Gabriel, but perhaps he could help some.

"No, Castiel. I'm good." Gabriel said, his tone held barely contained annoyance, and Castiel took the hint to shut up. He retreated farther onto the bed with Dean, looking dejected. Dean pat him on the back and gently urged him to remove his hoody.

Bobby returned not long after Castiel had discovered Gabriel's blood had soaked through to his shirt, though it no longer glowed. Dean turned white again and looked away, hiding his face. The kid wasn't exactly squeamish, it's hard to be when you've seen your mother burn to death, but seeing his best friend covered in blood was not something he could handle at that moment.

After handing the small container of coffee, two packets of skittles and a Hershey's milk chocolate bar to Gabriel, Bobby ushered Cas into the bathroom to help him change his shirt. While in the bathroom with him, he took the chance to question Castiel on Gabriel's condition.

"Do you angels heal fast?" Was his first question. He had no qualms taking care of Gabriel, since the archangel gone trickster gone archangel had fought for them, but he needed to know how long they'd be vulnerable for.

"Ordinarily." Castiel answered, rubbing a small wet wash cloth over the remnants of a bloody handprint on his chest. "But in Gabriel's case, I don't know."

"Why?" Bobby prompted. It wasn't a necessary question, but he was curious.

"Angel blades are different. They can inflict damage on the grace of an angel." Castiel explained. "I do not know how long they take to heal naturally. They are treated as very serious in Heaven and are healed immediately." He continued, setting the distinctly pinker wash cloth on the counter and grabbing the shirt Bobby had grabbed for him. "I gave myself a shallow cut on accident with one during training and they took me directly to Raphael." He said as an example. "My injury was not even comparable to Gabriel's and they rushed me to one of the highest ranking angels." He looked down, gripping his shirt tightly. "I am so worried for Gabriel."

"He says he'll be good." Bobby said reassuringly. "My guess is that this isn't his first injury." He said.

Castiel nodded at him and requested help with his shirt. Bobby had to help him navigate all his limps into the proper spots. It was a rather frustrating task, and Bobby couldn't remember the last time he felt as satisfied as when Castiel popped his head through a hole that wasn't also occupied by his arm. When they finally returned to the main room of the motel room, they were greeted by John shaking Gabriel by the shoulders anxiously.

"Come on, Gabriel! Wake up!" They heard John shouting. Castiel rushed over to where they were seated, still between the two motel beds. Dean was watching the whole situation nervously as Sammy slept on obliviously in his carrier.

The archangel in question, was slumped over on the floor, empty coffee cup in one hand and half of a chocolate bar in the other. Obviously, he was eating while John tended to his wound and passed out somehow. John looked over to Bobby and Cas desperately.

"Please tell me one of you knows how to check if he's still alive." He begged, towel still pressed to Gabriel's side. To Bobby's and Castiel's immense relief, the wound was no longer bleeding profusely, but had slowed. When John took the towel away, it looked as if it had even started to scab over.

"He isn't dead." Castiel replied after surveying his unconscious brother. "He is just sleeping." He walked over and moved Gabriel's tattered shirt aside to better see the wound, taking advantage of the archangel's lack of awareness to get a better look. "It looks as if Gabriel has figured out how to metabolize energy from sugar and caffeine to boost his grace." He pointed to the closing wound as an example. "Sleeping further speeds the process, since he doesn't have to devote energy to staying awake."

"That's… Cool." John said lamely, both mesmerized and disgusted as he watched the hole in Gabriel's side close itself up.

"That's really gross." Dean finally piped up from his spot on the bed. Castiel looked at him in confusion and he pointed to Gabriel's side as an explanation. "I don't like it." He turned away with a shudder. Castiel got up on the bed next to him, spouting apologies to the child. John took the opportunity to cover Gabriel's wound with the towel again, saving Dean from having to watch the accelerated healing process. Gabriel was going to need a new shirt.

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><p><strong>TBC<strong>


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: Why did I take online classes? That was an awful idea.**

**Here's a new chapter! (Finally -_-) Thank you for all your favotires, follows and reviews!**

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><p>Gabriel woke up the next morning in someone else's bed. This would not be ordinarily shocking if he didn't also have a headache with the intensity of a hangover and the bitter taste in his mouth. He surveyed the area, smacking his lips and swallowing to rid himself of the undesirable taste and found no one else in the room with him. Confused, but otherwise relieved, he stood and stretched, then winced when his side pulled. He lifted his shirt, belatedly noticing it was about four sizes too big and went all the way down to his knees, to look at the area. It was pinkish and tender to the touch, like a sun burn.<p>

"Oh!" Gabriel voiced his realization aloud as the memories flooded back to him. He'd accidentally passed out on John's motel room floor. That didn't explain him waking up in the bed, however, or the fact that absolutely no one was around. "Helloooooo?" He called, wandering through the room, he didn't get an answer. He could vaguely sense presences around him, but he was by no means at full power, so they all seemed jumbled.

After several minutes of wandering around, calling for people, looking in the bathroom and even looking under the beds, the motel room door opened. Bobby came through the door with coffee and chocolate and Gabriel looked at him like _he _was the angel.

"What are you doing?" Bobby questioned the archangel currently standing in the middle of the room.

"Is that for me?" Gabriel asked, pointing to the chocolate. "Because if it isn't, I might cry." He threatened. Bobby rolled his eyes and tossed him the chocolate.

"How's the wound?" Bobby asked, popping the lid off of the coffee and drinking half the cup in one gulp.

Gabriel patted his side confidently. "Good as new!" He cheerfully proclaimed. "Who's shirt is this?" He then said, grabbing at the collar.

"Mine." Bobby grumped. "You didn't exactly bring anything along with you to change into once you bled all over your shirt." He commented wryly. Gabriel rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers, suddenly dressed in a new shirt, with Bobby's shirt folded neatly on the bed. "Got you're mojo back, I see." Bobby said.

"Mojo?" Gabriel questioned with a smirk. "And yeah, like I said. Good as new." He puffed his chest out proudly.

"Good." Bobby said, and then sat on the bed opposite the one Gabriel had been in. "Now down to business." He said, setting the coffee between his legs. "We've got demons, angels, archangels and who knows what else on our tails, all because 'God' decided to mess up some prophecy. You're our only ally, and the only one of us who knows anything besides Cas, so spill." He demanded, eyes cold.

Gabriel looked confused for a second. "Okay, you're going to have to be more specific about what you want spilling." He said, crossing his arms. "I know a lot of stuff, and most of it has nothing to do with the stuff happening now."

Bobby huffed in annoyance, tapping his foot. "I don't know; maybe tell us what the prophecy is about? Or maybe why your brother was trying to kidnap Cas? Or you could even tell me what the hell the demons have to do with any of this." Bobby listed off his major questions, barely containing his impatience with the Trickster archangel.

"Oooooh! Why didn't you just ask?" Gabriel said, chuckling inwardly when Bobby's complexion turned a shade of red. "The prophecy's about the end of the world, but don't tell anyone I told you." He said, plopping himself down on the bed. "Basically, the prophecy talks about the events leading up to the great battle between Mike and Lucy." Gabriel explained.

"What's that got to do with us?" Bobby demanded.

"Patience, I was getting to that." Gabriel scolded. "It's got nothing to do with _you,_ but everything to do with the Winchesters. Sam and Dean are the vessels for my brothers, Michael and Lucifer. Little Sammy is supposed to let Lucifer out of his cage and then agree to be his vessel. Dean, with the encouragement of Cas and his angel posse, will agree to become Michael's vessel and then boom! Great Battle of Armageddon." Gabriel explained this like he was talking about the plot of an interesting book, rather than a prophecy about the end of the world. "Of course, there's a little more to it than that, but I gave you the abridged version." He explained with a wink.

"What happens after the Battle of Armageddon?" Bobby asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I dunno. Theoretically, Heaven wins, but Dad never told Metatron to write down what's supposed to happen after that." Gabriel said. "Doesn't matter anyways." He then commented. "I found Dad and He told me that the prophecy was null." He looked rather pleased with himself when he said that.

"What?" Bobby questioned. Gabriel smirked.

"The prophecy's not supposed to happen." Gabriel explained proudly. "I thought so, since He sent Cas down here personally."

"Isn't God supposed to be all-knowing or whatever? What caused Him to change his plans?" Bobby questioned skeptically.

"His all-knowing-ness!" Gabriel replied with a grin. "Like I told Raphael, he must have seen a wrench thrown into the works somewhere and decided to switch course."

"Alright." Bobby said, accepting Gabriel's answer for what it was. He wasn't about to question the metaphysics of omniscience.

"I guess this is a good time to explain my brother's actions too." Gabriel continued. Obviously the archangel liked talking. "Michael's the head-honcho archangel, so technically, when God isn't giving orders, he is." Gabriel explained. "Mike likes plans, he's also got a bit of a grudge against Lucy, so he was excited about the prophecy coming to pass soon." He said. "So it makes sense that he'd try to ratify the events that are going wrong. That means sending angels out to take Cas back and possibly erase your memories."

"Why is Cas being with us causing the prophecy to go wrong, though?" Bobby questioned. He'd heard a little about it from Raphael, but he still didn't fully understand. "So what if Cas was supposed to meet Dean later. Wouldn't his meeting now speed up the events of the prophecy?"

"Mm…. Good question." Gabriel complemented. "Yeah, Cas is supposed to meet Dean and Sam, but he's supposed to have a different job. He's not a protector in the prophecy; he's more of a guide. He's supposed to tell Dean what to do and encourage him to accept Michael." Gabriel paused and smirked mischievously. "Though, according to Father, Cas is a master of messing stuff up."

"What do you mean?" Bobby questioned.

"He apparently doesn't even fulfill the purpose he's supposed to have in the prophecy. He actually teams up with Dean and tries to prevent the Battle." Gabriel said with a chuckle.

"What's so funny about that?" Bobby asked, perplexed.

"Even if my brothers managed to kidnap Cas and set everything back on track, it would still all go to hell!" Gabriel exclaimed. "And they tried to train Cas so well, too. He got all the special attention, specialized training, meetings with the archangels, emphasis on his 'education'. My brothers pulled out all the stops to get my little brother to follow his destined path and he still deviates!" Gabriel was full out laughing now. "It makes me so proud of the little guy."

Bobby raised an eyebrow at the archangel in hysterics. Gabriel seemed to be the picture of a rebellious son; doing everything he can to undermine the plans of his father and family.

"But anyway…" Gabriel calmed down. "That's why they want Cas." He finished that topic and moved on to the next. "As for the demons, Hell has just as much a chance of winning as Heaven does, so of course they want the battle on track." He explained. "That's how you know the plan's gonna go sour, if both Heaven and Hell agree on something."

"How do we protect ourselves?" Bobby asked. "We barely know anything about demons and virtually nothing about angels. Things are not exactly on our side." Bobby commented.

"Oh, I got you covered." Gabriel assured with a wave of his hand. "I know some sigils I can carve into you to keep the angels from finding you and I also know some spells that'll send them away should they come after you." Gabriel said. At the mention of carving sigils, Bobby tensed, and Gabriel flexed his fingers teasingly. "And for the demons, that knife I gave you kills em' they won't be coming back once you stab them with it. Plus, Cas and I can kill them too. I'll give you some spells, sigils and other things that can ward them off too, if that'll make you feel better." He winked and Bobby frowned.

"Alright, I don't feel very good about this, but there's no turning back now." Bobby said, uncrossing his arms.

"That's the spirit! Let's go find my bro and the rest of the crew, I want to get you guys all sigiled up before we head out." Gabriel said, standing and pushing up his sleeves excitedly.

"Yeah, about that, is that going to hurt?" Bobby questioned.

Gabriel gave Bobby the most unsettling grin he'd seen on anything, demon, angel or human. "Yup!" He answered cheerfully. "Don't worry, it'll only last a few seconds, though." He patted Bobby's shoulder reassuringly. Bobby got the feeling that it was going to hurt a lot more for him and John than for Dean, Cas or Sammy.

They made their way into John's room, Gabriel leading the way. The door was unlocked, so they let themselves in to find John wrestling a shirt over Dean's head, while Castiel seemed to have gotten lost in his own.

"Why does this shirt have long sleeves? It's inconvenient." Castiel commented unhappily, trying unsuccessfully to push his hand through one sleeve and his head through the other. Sam cheered them on happily from his position on the bed, bouncing and clapping his hands. He got even more excited when he saw Gabriel, bouncing happily and reaching up to him.

Gabriel seemed to melt at that. "Hey, Sammy! You want me?" He gushed, making his way over to the baby. Meanwhile, John had managed to pop Dean's head through the proper hole and had moved onto Cas, gently directing the fledgling's arms to the correct sleeves and openings.

"What's with you and that baby?" Bobby questioned with a huff, observing the archangel bounce Sammy on his hip.

"Kid knows what's good for him!" Gabriel said. "Cas and I are pulling that demon blood out of him. Even in small amounts it's not good for anyone to have in them." He said proudly. By this time, Castiel had found his way into his shirt and John was making his way over to Bobby and John.

"Why does my son have demon blood in him?" John demanded, towering over the archangel. Despite the height difference, Gabriel still managed not to look threatened.

"Azazel put it in him." Gabriel said solemnly. If John wasn't satisfied by this answer, he didn't show it.

"How can I find Azazel?" John asked instead. Gabriel carefully placed Sammy back on the bed and placed a hand above John's ribs.

"First things first." Gabriel said, before pushing his hand firmly against John's abdomen. John looked confused and mildly insulted before his expression morphed into pain and he jerked away.

"God damn it!" He shouted, backing away harshly and placing a hand over his ribs. "That hurt! What the hell?!"

"You're welcome." Gabriel said offhandedly. "Now no angels can find you."

Dean and Castiel had made their way over by that time, observing the scene curiously. Castiel spoke first. "You know how to use those sigils, Gabriel?" He asked. He almost sounded disappointed.

"Yeah, duh. Why?" Gabriel questioned.

Castiel looked at his feet. "I read a book about them in the Library. It was really old, it hadn't been opened in billions of years, not since it had been written. I thought I was the only one who could use them." He explained. He managed to sound equal parts guilty and disappointed that his trick wasn't a secret.

"Who do you think wrote that book?" Gabriel asked with a raised brow. Castiel looked surprised, and Gabriel laughed. "No one thought they'd ever be useful. 'Why'd you wanna hide from an angel?' They would ask, but you know what, I wrote it down anyway and look who used it!" He exclaimed happily. "Did you use it on yourself?" He asked hopefully. He didn't want to cause Cas any pain.

"No… Balthazar said I wouldn't need it and asked me to try it on him." Castiel reported sadly.

"Probably wanted to go sneaking around in the weapons vault without getting caught." Gabriel pondered, hand on his chin.

Bobby cleared his throat loudly, interrupting their conversation. When they turned to look at him, he crossed his arms and huffed. "Are you going to get the rest of us done, or are we going to gossip like middle aged house wives?" He asked sarcastically.

"Alright." Gabriel said. That unsettling grin was back on his face and he popped his knuckles menacingly. Without warning he had his hands on top of Bobby's ribs and there was a sharp pain followed by a burning.

"Balls!" Bobby exclaimed, jerking away from Gabriel and coughing. "Those damn well better work." He said angrily.

"Oh, they do." Gabriel said. He then turned to Sammy. "Sorry about this squirt. How about this?" He asked. He pushed two fingers to Sammy's forehead and the baby went limp in sleep. He then put his hand over Sammy's tummy. He didn't feel it, and Gabriel sighed in relief. "Alright, you next, Dean." Gabriel said. "You wanna go to sleep too?"

Dean grabbed his shirt nervously and looked over at Cas. "Is Cas gonna?" He asked.

"I will if you want me to, Dean." Castiel said reassuringly. Dean snaked his hand into Castiel's before sitting on the bed and nodding at Gabriel.

"Alright, here goes." Gabriel said, placing two fingers on Dean's forehead. The boy fell backwards into unconsciousness, but didn't let Cas' hand go. "You next." Gabriel said, pushing the same two fingers to Cas' head. The fledgling fell backwards too, sighing softly. Gabriel then placed one hand on Dean's ribs and one hand on Cas' and applied the sigils simultaneously. "All done!"

"What was that?!" John demanded, finally having recovered from the pain of the sigils burning into his ribs.

"Sigils, you won't be found by any angels now." Gabriel repeated happily.

"Why didn't we get the sleep treatment?" John asked exasperatedly.

"Cause I don't like you." Gabriel said firmly. "Besides, a little pain will do you some good." He smirked at John's glare.

The kids were still sleeping, so when Gabriel turned around to address Bobby. John flipped him the bird. He instantly regretted it when he found the rubber of the soles of his shoes melted into the carpet.

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><p><strong>TBC <strong>


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: So college is slowing down? It's weird. I have this feeling it's the calm before the epic storm of stressfulness and nervous breakdowns that midterms were. Hopefully I'll manage to get some more chapters done before that happens though.**

**Anyway, here's a new chapter! Thank you for all you favorites, follows reads and reviews!**

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><p>After successfully ungluing himself from the carpet and giving Gabriel one of his best glares, John went to shake the kids awake and get them ready to go. Gabriel and Bobby were talking about other ways to repel demons and angels, which resulted in Gabriel scorching something into the wall with his finger. He spoke loud enough for John and the kids to hear and redrew it for good measure when he saw them take interest in his explanation.<p>

"This symbol sends the angels away." He explained. "You gotta draw it in blood though, and it's gotta be clear, so I don't recommend using it often." He started to redraw it a third time. "The easiest way to draw it is like this, that way everything is in the right position." It was only at that time that John noticed the notepad in Bobby's hand, a pen scratching down the symbol. "You guys already know how to make a devil's trap, so no worries there." He paused for a minute, and then started drawing more complex symbols. He provided an explanation as he drew each one. "These are just general repelling symbols. They work really well on angels and I think demons too." He said. "I'm not too sure though, since I've only ever used them on Raphael and Michael to mess with them."

Bobby snorted, but wrote down the symbols. "You seem like you'd be a fun brother to have." He said sarcastically, as he wrote down the final symbol.

"Oh yeah! Tons of fun!" Gabriel said, either not catching the sarcasm or not caring. Castiel silently observed as Gabriel continued explaining things. John leaned over to him, breaking his concentration and asked him a question quietly.

"Is any of this common angel knowledge?" John muttered to him. Castiel shook his head, a small frown on his face.

"None of it. I'm not sure how prudent it is to be explaining it to a hunter either. I have no desire to see my brothers and sisters harmed with these techniques." He said firmly. He prayed that Gabriel would not explain a way to kill an angel, or go so far as to give the Winchesters an angel sword. He did not want his brothers and sisters dead.

"It's necessary, Cas." John told him, attempting to ruffle his hair comfortingly. Castiel avoided it. Killing his brothers and sisters would never be necessary.

Gabriel finished explaining things about an hour later. Bobby had a notebook full of angel and demon repelling symbols and even a few helpful ways other than the demon trap to capture a demon. At that point, Gabriel began putting lines through the symbols.

"Why are you doing that?" John asked, watching as the angel left another scorched line through an intricate twisting symbol.

"Don't wanna leave them active. Plus, I can't leave the room until some of them are crossed out." Gabriel admitted.

Bobby rose his eyebrows. "Is that what you were using to keep Raphael from disappearing?" He asked. Gabriel laughed and shook his head.

"Nah! That was just my power." He pulled his sleeve up over his bicep and flexed it as an example. Although, it wasn't a particularly good example, since his biceps were smaller than both John's and Bobby's and might have been the size of Dean's thigh. John snorted. "Don't laugh! Strong people don't flaunt their power." He said sagely, though it was obvious that Gabriel often didn't follow his own advice. Both John and Bobby started laughing outright at him, and Gabriel looked indignant. "Archangels get no respect around here. No respect!" He ranted.

After quite a bit of laughing, Gabriel melting John's shoes back to the carpet and making it so that Bobby could not remove his hat no matter how hard he pulled, they began packing up. Gabriel and Bobby discussing a game plan while occasionally trailing into the subject of what he had to do to get Gabriel to unstick his hat from his head.

"We can't go back to your house. I'm sorry, but they know that's probably where we'd go and they might have angels stationed there." Gabriel said to Bobby. "And no. No amount of Skittles are going to get that hat off your head." He said with a laugh.

Bobby huffed and crossed his arms. "Damn." He commented. "Anyway, I know a place we could go. The Roadhouse, it's a bit of a drive, but it'll give us a safe place to settle and make a better plan."

"Cool! But we're totally not driving there, so give me an address." Gabriel said. "No way I'm squeezing in the back of that hunk of metal with the kids, no matter how cute they are." He looked around, hoping to get indignant looks from the kids, but they were apparently out helping John pack, leaving Sammy in his carrier, who caught Gabriel's eye and cooed happily.

"How are we _not _driving there?" Bobby asked, interrupting his search for attention. "You gonna fly us there?" He asked sarcastically.

"Yup!" Gabriel said. "Probably should bring the car too…" He added, trailing off in thought. Bobby looked at him like he'd grown another head. Gabriel furrowed his brows. "What?! Don't tell me you think I can't." He threatened.

"I think you can't." Bobby replied flatly. Maybe Gabriel can poof himself places, but that wasn't _flying. _

"You wanna bet?" Gabriel asked. It was really more of a threat than a wager.

"I'm not trying to insult ya'." Bobby said, trying to placate the insulted archangel. "I just don't think our definitions of flying match." He said.

"Like hell they don't." Gabriel said shortly. He swiftly jabbed Bobby's forehead with two fingers and after a rush of air and dizzying vertigo, they both found themselves on top of a very tall building, cars bustling below them the size of ants.

Despite himself, Bobby shouted in fear and stumbled away from the edge of whatever building they were on. "Where the hell is this?!" Bobby demanded of the archangel standing next to him. The angel in question was currently doubled over laughing.

"Y-your face!" Gabriel exclaimed, wiping tears from his eyes. "So funny!" He started laughing again, plopping himself down and laughing even harder. "And your scream! Oh man, you sounded like a girl!" He forced out between bouts of laughter.

Bobby frowned at him, obviously taking offense to Gabriel's amusement. "What'd you expect suddenly teleporting me on top of buildings?!" He questioned unhappily.

"That's called flying!" Gabriel exclaimed, calming down and standing up. "I flew you to the Empire State Building, by the way. We'll need to leave soon, unless you want to get in trouble." Gabriel said, throwing him a wink. It was as if he thought that getting into trouble would be fun. He probably did.

"What the hell…" Bobby asked no one in particular, risking another look over the edge. They were really high up. He felt a hand on his back and flinched, stumbling back so he was at least ten feet from the edge.

"Ready to go?" Gabriel asked. Bobby nodded. "Moral of this? Don't question me." He said cheekily, before placing a hand on Bobby's forehead.

Bobby found himself back in the motel room, both Dean and John staring at him with complete disbelief while Cas looked un-amusedly at Gabriel. The archangel shot them all a cheeky grin and then proceeded out the door, motioning for them to follow.

"What was that all about?" John asked in a whisper. "We came back in and you were both gone." Bobby crossed his arms and huffed.

"He's temperamental and has an ego the size of this country, that's what." Bobby explained. He then stalked out of the room, looking frustrated. John didn't look very surprised at that statement and followed Bobby with Sam's baby carrier. Dean and Cas followed afterwards, but not before Dean leaned over to Cas.

"What'd Gabriel do?" Dean asked in amazement.

"He probably flew Bobby somewhere to 'teach him a lesson'." Castiel replied simply, but not unkindly.

"Ooooh…" Dean said, not pushing the subject anymore. Bobby seemed awfully mad when he came back from wherever Gabriel took him and Dean had no desire to find out why.

They made their way out of the motel and loaded up the Impala with their luggage and the kids. John waited for Bobby to climb into the driver's seat, remembering Bobby's warning when they first checked in. To his surprise, however, Bobby didn't climb in, he didn't even open the door, just leaned his rear up against the front part of the Impala and crossed his arms, looking expectantly at Gabriel. He looked between the two with confusion for a few moments before Gabriel rolled his eyes.

"Get in the car, it's easier to transport you all there as one package. Don't have to keep track of the individual pieces that way." Gabriel said, motioning to the car. Bobby sighed and got in, followed by an even more confused John. "That's it. Now hold on tight and don't go rocking the boat." He said, placing an open palmed hand on the Impala's roof. The next thing John knew they were falling, or at least what felt like falling, only they were going forward. It was all very disorientating. It felt vaguely akin to the time Cas teleported them out of the car, only this time it was smoother and faster. In less than a second they were in front of an old bar-like building. Gabriel was stood next to his, still broken, passenger side window, panting slightly with a hand on his side.

"Are you oka—" John began to ask, but Gabriel wordlessly put his other hand up to silence him.

"All good." Gabriel said. "Didn't realize it'd pull so bad during takeoff, but we're good now." He assured, standing up straighter and wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Gabriel, if you were not well enough to do it, we could have driven." Castiel's simultaneously angry and worried tones shot from the backseat. Dean was plastered to his side, looking rather sick. "That was awfully unstable. Not only did you endanger yourself, but the lives of the Winchesters as well."

Gabriel rolled his eyes, but didn't get onto Cas about his tone. Castiel's holy duty was to protect the Winchesters, so he had every right to be lecturing him right now.

"Yeah, whatever, sorry." Gabriel said dismissively, a bit too distracted by the pain in his side to give Castiel very much attention. Castiel didn't seem very satisfied by this response, but thankfully didn't push it.

John began to say something to Gabriel and move to get out, but was stopped when he heard the click of a gun being armed and a firm shout.

"Alight. I saw that." The person said, possibly a woman, with a southern accented voice. "Tell me what you are and I might not shoot you." John looked up in the direction of the voice as Gabriel moved protectively between the gun and the car. The woman in question was stood a few feet from the entrance of the bar, a shot gun in hand and currently aimed at Gabriel's chest. She had mid-length brown hair and an ordinarily pretty face if it wasn't so scrunched up in anger and concentration.

Gabriel put his hands up, surprisingly opting for a peaceful approach to this armed and dangerous woman. "Alright, yeah, you caught me." Gabriel said, loud enough for her to hear from her position. A man came out of the door behind her, also armed. Gabriel figured he was her husband. "You can put your weapons down, I was just dropping these people off here. I'll leave." He said. Castiel was about to protest, but found himself suddenly unable to speak.

"What are you?!" The man this time, repeating the woman's demand.

Gabriel shrugged. "You won't believe me if I tell you." He said.

"Oh believe me, we'll believe a hell of a lot." The woman shouted back cheekily.

"Okay!" Gabriel replied. "I'm an archangel. Name's Gabriel." He said, putting his hands down and leaning easily against the car.

"Don't lie to us!" The man shouted, looking at him in disbelief. Gabriel shrugged, pulling a piece of chocolate out of his pocket. The movement prompted the man to shoot, barely missing Gabriel.

"Hey!" Gabriel warned angrily. "There are kids in the car. Shoot at me all you want, but at least aim properly."

The man looked surprised. "Kids?" He asked. "What kind?"

"Human kids...?" Gabriel asked sarcastically. "What other kind would I have? Goats?" Bobby rolled down the window and jabbed his finger into Gabriel's back, trying to grab his attention. Gabriel looked back at him with a glare.

"Don't taunt these people too much. We want them on our side." Bobby said dangerously.

"Fine. Fi—" Gabriel was interrupted by a shot. He looked down and saw a hole through his shirt and his chest. He looked down at it and then back up at the shooter, the woman. "Hey! That was rude." Gabriel said. "I was talking."

The woman looked shocked at his lack of reaction. Gabriel placed a hand over the hole in his chest and when he took it away, the hole was gone and he had the bullet in his hand. "Rock salt? Seriously?" He looked back up at the woman. "I'm not a demon, or a ghost, so none of that is going to work."

"Worth a shot." The woman said defensively. Bobby chose that moment to get out of the car.

"Hey, Ellen! It's Bobby." Bobby shouted over at the woman. The woman did not lower her gun, but moved so it aimed at Bobby. The man kept his gun aimed at Gabriel.

"That better not be a trick, hot shot." Ellen threatened Gabriel, even with her gun pointed at Bobby. "Get in here, Singer. The rest of you, stay there." She instructed. Bobby slowly made his way to Ellen.

"What are you going to do to him?" John shouted from the Impala, preparing to get out and follow Bobby, but was stopped by a shot into the side of the vehicle.

"We're just going to do a few tests. Shouldn't be a problem… If he's human." The man said. He motioned for John to get back into the car, who complied, but grudgingly, watching as Bobby disappeared into the building.

Gabriel sat himself on the hood of the car with a huff. "I'll have to ask Bobby if everyone involved in hunting acts like this or if the people he knows are special." He said loud enough for the man to hear.

"This wouldn't have happened if we had driven." John said and Gabriel turned to glare at him.

Castiel, Dean and Sam were all pretty much silent in the back. The gunfire effectively frightening Dean and Castiel had no desire to draw attention to himself. He didn't want to be shot. John turned and looked back at them, feeling somewhat secure with Gabriel sitting on the hood of the car and attracting the gunman's attention.

"You doing okay back there?" He asked gently. Castiel nodded and put an arm around Dean's shoulder to rouse him from staring out the window. He looked at John, adopting Castiel's head tilt. John sighed. "I asked if you were okay, Dean." He clarified. Dean finally nodded. John turned back around to face Gabriel who wasn't paying any attention to him.

"Aren't your arms tired?" Gabriel shouted over at the man. The man ignored him, gun still raised. Gabriel sighed dramatically. "You all are too much trouble." He said warily. John could swear he saw Castiel roll his eyes in the rear view mirror.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: So I'll be posting something here and something over in the Thor fandom, so if you like little kid Thor and Loki with Mommy Frigga, go check that out :)It's my first short-ish oneshot, so I'm really nervous about it.**

**Thank you guys for your support and please enjoy this chapter :)**

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><p>Gabriel, John, Dean, Cas and Sammy continued to sit in the car for another fifteen minutes, the man never faltering with his aim at Gabriel. Finally Bobby came out, Ellen no longer had her gun pointed at him, so that must mean they were all clear.<p>

"Hey Bobby! Did they probe you?" Gabriel asked jokingly. Bobby gave him a glare and the woman looked insulted. The man leaned over to have Ellen whisper in her ear, before he motioned for them all to get out of the car. Gabriel positioned himself in front of the back seat portion of the car, protecting the kids from any gunfire. Eventually John got them all unloaded and began walking them up to the door, Gabriel still in the lead.

As they walked, Dean snaked his hand into Castiel's and held tight. "I'm scared." He whispered. Castiel squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"There is no need. Gabriel and I will protect you." Castiel said. Gabriel smirked, happy to be included.

"Alright, get inside. You all have some explaining to do before I really decide you're good enough not to put a bullet in." Ellen said, hands on her hips as they marched past her and into the building. Once they all filed into the building, they were indeed greeted by what looked very much like a bar. There wasn't anyone there, but that was to be expected, as it was still morning. She ushered them into the back, but stopped when the sound of a baby crying floated down from up the stairs. She sighed and looked over at the man. "Honey, will you—" She began to ask, but the man was already on his way upstairs.

"I got it, you take care of these folks." He said, he placed his gun on the table nearest the stairs before making his way up.

"You got a kid?" Bobby asked, surprised.

"Didn't I tell you?" Ellen asked. Bobby shrugged, signaling that he didn't remember. Ellen huffed. "You were probably drunk." She said. Bobby gaped at her, but was unable to deny the possibility. She turned to face Dean and Castiel at that moment, adopting a softer look in her eyes. "And who are these two? I didn't know you had young'uns, Bobby." She said. Dean shied away from her gaze, tucking himself behind Castiel. She got ready to say something but was interrupted.

"They're mine." John said firmly, drawing the woman's attention. He pointed to Cas. "He's Castiel." And then he pointed to Dean. "And this one is Dean. He's shy." John explained. He then proffered the baby carrier, revealing a sleeping Sammy. "And this is Sammy." He said. He wasn't about to go into the explanation about Cas, so he hoped Ellen didn't ask.

She turned back to the kids with an almost motherly smile. "I'm Mrs. Ellen." She said, introducing herself to Castiel and Dean. Dean didn't say anything, merely trying to hide farther behind Castiel.

"Nice to meet you." Castiel said formally with a nod.

"Are you brothers?" Ellen asked. She knew they couldn't be twins, but they looked close in age.

"Yes." John said, before Castiel could answer anything different. "About a year apart. Cas is older." John said. He'd have to make sure to remember that's what he said. He looked to Bobby for approval, who looked back impassively.

"About?" Ellen asked, raising an eyebrow at John.

"He's adopted." John blurted automatically.

"Ah, that explains it then." Ellen said, turning away from the two and going into the kitchen to get some things.

"Explains what?" John called after her. Looking confusedly at Bobby, then Cas.

"Castiel doesn't look anything like his brother." Ellen said slyly. She returned to the room holding a few glasses of water. "Sorry squirts, but I'm going to need you to drink this." She handed a glass to Dean and then to Cas. Cas looked at the contents of the glass, already sensing that it was holy water and drank deeply. Dean did the same, but frowned at the taste. The water had obviously been sitting around for a while.

She handed a glass to John as well, eyeing him suspiciously, as he took a drink. She seemed satisfied by his lack of reaction, however.

"What, none for me?" Gabriel asked with mock insult.

"You're obviously not human, but Bobby says you're okay, so I'll trust that… For now." Ellen said dangerously. She flashed a hand gun she had in her pocket at him as an example.

John desperately wanted to ask what all Bobby had told this woman, but he probably wouldn't ever get the chance. It didn't seem Bobby had said anything about Cas, so Ellen probably believed his lie.

Ellen clapped her hands, startling John out of his thoughts and making Dean jump. She flipped a silver knife out of her pocket and held it in her hand delicately. "I'm going to have to test you with the knife too, which means I need to make a cut." She said apologetically. "I'll try not to make it hurt.

Castiel could feel Dean squeeze his hand as Ellen approached them. She didn't look malicious, just determined, so Cas did not fear, though he would have to make an effort not to heal the wound immediately after it was made. John seemed to be pretending he was human. Ellen kneeled down in front of him and Dean moved farther behind, adamantly avoiding the woman. She reached out for his arm and Castiel allowed her to pull his sleeve up.

"Sorry about this, just a precaution." She apologized, then made a quick slice across the skin just before the inside of his elbow. Dean jerked away from both him and Ellen, tears in his eyes.

"I don't wanna." Dean cried. He grabbed Castiel's hand again and pulled them both behind John. "Daddy, don't let her."

John looked down at Dean and then back up at Ellen, who looked more sad than angry. "Does he really have to? He's only five. Even if he were possessed, there's nothing—"

"He could be a creature disguised as your son, and the only way to know is with silver." Ellen said. John frowned and crossed his arms.

"Dean is never out of my sight, so I can guarantee, that's my son."

"I find that hard to believe." Ellen said honestly. She turned to Dean. "It'll be real quick, and it won't hurt." She bargained. When Dean still didn't come out from behind his father, she looked over to Cas, who had allowed her to cut him without a flinch. "Right, Castiel?" She asked. Castiel looked hesitant. It didn't hurt _him, _but he had no idea how Dean would react.

"I don't know." He settled on honestly.

"You're no help." Ellen admonished, but not unkindly.

"Look, I'll heal ya, Dean-o. No problem." Gabriel said, placing a hand on Cas as an example. The wound on Castiel's arm closed easily, and everyone in the room, including Ellen, marveled at it.

Castiel nodded, walking over to Dean to show him his arm. "It may hurt, but only for a little while." He said. Dean grabbed Castiel's hand and inched out from behind his father. Allowing Ellen to see his other arm. She made a quick slice, which caused Dean to cry, more out of fear than pain, and then Gabriel was there, with a hand over the cut. When he took it away, the cut was gone and he had a Hershey's Kiss for Dean.

"Not so bad, right?" Gabriel said, as Dean took the candy from him. "Now it's daddy's turn." He said, leering evilly at John.

Ellen gave John a quick slice too, but let the knife linger longer than she did on the kids. Either testing him or picking up on the fact that an archangel hated him.

Gabriel stood up from Dean, ignoring John's glare to face Ellen. "You can cut me too." He said, giving her his hand. "A lot of good it will do you though. Silver doesn't affect me." Ellen ignored him and sliced him across his arm, probably a bit deeper than she needed to. Gabriel gave her a hurt look, but she ignored him, seemingly angry by his lack of reaction to silver. "Now that you're done tormenting the children, can we please talk about why we're here?" Gabriel asked impatiently.

Bobby spoke up at that point. "I brought you here because it's the safest place to hide out for people like us." He said.

"Speaking of which, who or what are you hiding from?" Ellen asked, crossing her arms and giving Bobby a glare.

"We're hiding from angels." Gabriel said. At Ellen's confused look, he elaborated. "It's all very complicated, but pretty much the Winchesters messed something up that Heaven wants fixed. They need the Winchesters to do that, but what they want fixed is bad news. It's best to keep them away from the other angels for now." Gabriel said.

"Angels?" Ellen asked. "Angels don't exist." She said firmly.

Gabriel rolled his eyes. "_Come ooon!" _He exclaimed in annoyance. "What is with you hunters and not believing in angels?!" He questioned angrily. "Haven't you ever thought that if demons exist, then angels can too?" He asked.

"There's just not any proof." Ellen said firmly.

"_I'm_ proof." Gabriel said, pointing to himself. "Great, almighty, powerful Archangel Gabriel, at your service. God's messenger? I told Mary she had a bun in the oven, what a shocker that was." When Ellen still looked unconvinced, he huffed. " What more proof do you need? Halos? Wings?" He demanded. He was thoroughly through with hunters discrediting their existence just because they didn't screw stuff up as often as demons did.

"There still isn't any _proof._" Ellen said again, arms crossed.

"Fine. When angels come knocking, and you aren't prepared, I take no responsibility." Gabriel said with a shrug. Ellen seemed satisfied with that, ushering them all into the main part of the bar just as the man came walking down the stairs with a baby.

"Must've heard them coming cause she wouldn't stop fussing." The man explained as he handed the baby off to Ellen. She turned to Bobby with the baby in her arms.

"It's been a while since you've come knocking, so I guess you've never met her. This is Jo." Ellen said, showing Bobby the baby.

"She's cute!" Gabriel said, coming over to take a look. Ellen frowned at him and he backed off. "Geez…" He said, putting his hands up.

"She's little like Sammy." Dean stated after examining the baby from his spot on the floor. Ellen nodded at him, casting a glance at the mentioned baby sleeping in his carrier.

"Yes she is." Ellen agreed with a smile. "Well, Bobby explained the situation. We've got some spare rooms upstairs that you can stay in, one for the kids, one for the adults. I don't recommend your _friend_ come down here in the evenings, unless he wants to get shot." Gabriel snorted. "But the rest of you are welcome down here, just keep an eye on the kids." She continued, casting a glare at Gabriel.

John, Gabriel and the kids headed outside to unpack their things while Bobby stayed and explained the details of their stay. Ellen looked thoughtful through the whole thing.

"I don't believe in angels, but I know someone who does. Maybe he knows something about being able to help you." Ellen said. She handed Jo off to Bobby before heading into the back room. "I'll call him." She explained.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: How would you guys feel about a Loki cameo in a couple chapters? I've written it, but I don't know if I should actually include it in with the other chapters. It's pretty much just a filler and has no effect on the story, but I had fun writing it! Let me know what you think!**

**Anyway, thank you for your reviews, favorites, follows and your views. Please enjoy this chapter! Also, if you guessed "Pastor Jim" as the person Ellen calls, then you were right!**

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><p>The person Ellen called turned out to be a pastor, named Pastor Jim. John wasn't sure how he felt about the coincidence between his name and Castiel's vessel's. Pastor Jim was very excited to be meeting possible angels, even if Ellen tried talking him down on the phone. According to Ellen as soon as she said "Gabriel" he started packing his travel bag. It would be at least a couple of days before he made it to the roadhouse, though, so they had some time to kill.<p>

During this time, Ellen's husband left for a hunt. Gabriel, for the most part, retreated to the bedroom with Sammy and Jo in evenings, Ellen having finally relented on her 'no angels touching my baby' policy when she had to run the Roadhouse by herself. John stayed downstairs with Bobby and listened to Bobby swap hunting stories with the multitude of hunters that gathered at the roadhouse. John took advantage of his exposure to more hunters to learn new tricks and get any information he could on summoning demons, though no one could fathom why he'd even want to do it. The kids, much to John's chagrin, took advantage of the hunters at the road house too. He wasn't sure when, but someone had taught Cas to play poker and the kid had accrued quite a bit of money from the unsuspecting hunters.

"He just blank faces it the whole time, I can't read him!" John had heard one hunter exclaim as he exited the bar about fifty dollars poorer. Honestly, John wasn't sure Cas actually knew what he was doing.

Dean on the other hand had taken to hanging out by the pool tables, occasionally being invited to a game or two. He never won anything, but he was getting better at it, even if he did have to stand on a chair to play. John wasn't sure how Marry would feel about her son being taught to play pool at five, but he's pretty sure she wouldn't approve.

It was around lunch time after the first night staying at the Roadhouse that Castiel came wandering up to John with several wads of cash. He offered them to him with a little frown creasing his brow. "I am not sure what to do with this." He said when John refused to take the money. "You should take it. You would know better what to do." He insisted, proffering the money again. At that point John took it, but resolved privately to not spend it. It was Cas' money.

On the third morning, a small black car pulled into the parking lot. Bobby was upstairs, possibly reading, so Gabriel had stayed down and was speaking to the kids at the table where they and John were seated. As soon as he sensed the car, though, Gabriel was up and heading up the stairs. "I'll just be up here…" He said, retreating just as the front door to the Roadhouse jingled.

"Hello?" The newest visitor called softly. "Ellen, are you here?" He asked. The man in question wore clothes typical to a pastor, with cleanly groomed black hair that swept to the right and disappeared behind his ear. He looked over at John with his kids and gave them a soft smile before Ellen came out of the kitchen to greet him.

"Hey Jim!" She said happily, giving him a warm hug. "You ready to meet an angel?" She asked. Jim's eyes got wide and excited and he nodded. She began to lead him up the stairs, but stopped at the table John and the kids were seated at. "This is John." She said, motioning towards the mentioned man, then pointing to Dean and Castiel. "And that's Dean, and that's Castiel." She said. Jim smiled at them again.

"Hello, my name is Pastor Jim." He said, offering a hand to John. "I've been contacted by Ellen about your 'angel' problem." He explained. "I've never come across angels myself, but I've studied them a fair bit, so hopefully I can be of some help." He smiled at him warmly as John shook his hand. "Is Castiel an angel too?" He asked both John and Ellen.

"No!" John almost yelped.

"Oh… I just thought with his name… It's the name of the Angel of Thursday, you know…" Pastor Jim trailed off, trying to explain himself. He probably thought he'd offended John somehow, when in reality he was just trying to keep his lie from being found out.

"R-Really? It's just a coincidence." John insisted. "We call him Cas for short." He said as if that was going to make it seem like Castiel wasn't an angel.

Pastor Jim didn't seem to question it, even if Ellen was standing there giving John a _look_ with her arms crossed just behind him. Pastor Jim proffered a hand to Castiel. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Cas." He said warmly. Castiel looked confused for a moment before finally taking his hand and shaking it. He then offered his hand to Dean, who had remained relatively silent. "And to you too, Dean." Dean shied away from him.

"He's shy." John stated when he noticed the pastor looking slightly hurt. Poor dude probably thought he was good with kids.

"Oh. That's alright." Pastor Jim said, retracting his hand. He turned to Ellen, a bit of a business-like air sweeping over him. "You said that there was an angel, correct?" He asked Ellen kindly, she nodded and led him upstairs. To John's surprise, Castiel followed the two without asking and Dean followed after Cas. Unwilling to be left alone in the bar a few hours before it got busy, John followed them.

Upstairs they were greeted by a closed door, with a rather childish sign stuck to the door that said "Do Not Disturb!" Ellen knocked on the door regardless and she saw the handle jiggle as presumably Bobby tried to open the door. There were a few jiggles and then the sound of something hitting the door before Bobby finally spoke.

"Gabriel has glued the damn door shut." Bobby explained to the people on the other side.

"It says not to disturb! That means no knocking either." Gabriel's petulant voice said, muffled by the door and his distance from it.

"Stop being a damn baby and go greet the pastor. Now." Bobby demanded unhappily.

Pastor Jim didn't look like he knew how to handle this situation, nervously floating behind Ellen. He jumped when it sounded like something had been thrown against the wall.

"You better not be breaking any of my stuff, Gabriel!" Ellen scolded. She heard Bobby seemingly reiterating what she had said and Gabriel whining like a child.

"Does he always act like this?" Pastor Jim asked John quietly.

John nodded. "You're lucky, usually people get glued to the floor when he throws his fits." He said exasperatedly. Pastor Jim's eyes widened in surprise and some form of terror.

"Would you like me to try?" Castiel asked politely. Everyone looked surprised at him. "He has probably done something to the door so that people he does not want to open it cannot open it." Castiel said this quietly, and most of them had to lean in to hear him. He stepped back a few steps, uncomfortable with all the attention. "I think that perhaps Dean or I can open it." He said. He looked around expectantly at them, waiting for a reply.

"It wouldn't hurt." John conceded first. Castiel nodded and made his way to the door, reaching up for the handle and turning it. The door unclicked and swung inward, revealing an unhappy Bobby standing on the other side with his arms crossed and Gabriel lying face down on the bed with the covers pulled up over his head.

"Go away!" Gabriel whined immediately as the little group filtered inside the room. "You all suck, you know that?" He said, pushing out from under the blankets. As soon as he stood up, Pastor Jim came after him with a proffered hand.

"Hi, I'm Pastor Jim, you're Gabriel, correct?" Pastor Jim said, coming ever closer to the archangel. The archangel in question merely crossed his arms.

"I don't do pastors." Gabriel said with a frown. "Not as bad as priests, but you're all still weird." He said, sticking his tongue out.

"Weird…?" Pastor Jim questioned, not missing a beat. Gabriel nodded.

"Yeah. Weird." Gabriel said. "Like, you don't even question the fact I'm an angel. You just jump head first into something you don't understand, just because you think it's what Dad wants from you." He said with crossed arms. "And you tell everyone else to do the same. You raise a bunch of zombies when you should be doing the opposite." He explained firmly.

Pastor Jim nodded, seemingly unfazed by this. "Keep in mind, Gabriel, that I am not just a pastor, I am also a hunter, so I may not fit your expectations." He said encouragingly. To his dismay, Gabriel merely rolled his eyes.

"Hunters are just as bad, if not worse." Gabriel said firmly.

"Okay, okay." Pastor Jim placated. "Let's not think of me as a pastor then, or a hunter." He bargained. "I'm just someone with some knowledge about angels that's been called in." He said.

Gabriel didn't seem entirely fine with that, but nodded anyway; signaling that Pastor Jim could ask his questions or perform his tests or whatever it was the overly friendly pastor had planned.

"Okay, first I have a few questions." Pastor Jim explained. Gabriel huffed out a breath, but didn't tell him no, so he continued. "Are you, in fact an angel? You seem to have proven yourself trustworthy, so if you aren't, I don't think you'll be in any danger." He encouraged.

"Yeah. That's a lie, but whatever, no matter what you do you can't kill me." Gabriel said in reference to Pastor Jim's statement about not being in danger. "But yeah, I'm an angel. An archangel, in fact." He explained.

"Are you the Gabriel spoke about in the book of Daniel and the Gospels?" Pastor Jim asked, the excited notes in his voice were starting to come back.

"Yeah. Messenger of God and all that jazz." Gabriel said with a note of pride.

Pastor Jim didn't say anything for a few moments, only looking excited. Finally he regained his composure. "Why have you decided to aid the Winchesters in their struggles against the other angels?" He asked.

Gabriel hesitated a moment, casting a surreptitious glance at Castiel. "Because Castiel's my brother and it's his job to protect the Winchesters and right now doing that includes fighting off Heaven's special forces." He said impassively.

"Gabriel!" John shouted in alarm. Gabriel shrugged.

"You should have learned by now that lying about what Castiel really is is counter productive." Gabriel scolded. "Anyone with a brain and eyes can see that Cas isn't normal and it's best to get that fact out in the open before it becomes a problem and you get him into trouble." He admonished. John looked around nervously at the others. Ellen didn't seem very surprised and Bobby looked entirely unimpressed.

"So Castiel is an angel as well?" Pastor Jim asked. Gabriel rolled his eyes.

"Of course. How couldn't you tell? His name alone should be enough." Gabriel huffed.

"I was trusting that John had told me the truth." Pastor Jim said, casting a glance over at John. John looked sheepishly at his feet. "So he is the Angel of Thursday?" Pastor Jim asks.

"Yeah. How do you know that?" Gabriel asked defensively. "Is he written about somewhere?"

"Not in the Bible or any traditional religious works." Pastor Jim says. "But he is featured in some writings by mystics. More modern ones, well, as modern as the seventeenth century can be." He said, shrugging. "One of the more recent angels written about."

"Cas is the second youngest." Gabriel says. "Samandriel's the youngest, born a couple hundred years ago. Cas was born a little after Jesus' birth." He said. "In preparation for the end and all that." He said casually."

"The end?" Pastor Jim asked. His countenance got a bit grimmer. "As in the End talked about in Revelation?"

"Not exactly, no." Gabriel said. At this point he flopped back down on the bed. "The end's a little different than what John saw in his fever dream of a vision." He explained. "Doesn't matter now, that's all null. All of it."

"What do you mean?" The pastor asked, more curious than anything.

"You heard it here first, actual words from my Dad, the Almighty and Magnificent Creator of All," Gabriel began with a sarcastic air. "_I changed my mind."_ He quoted. At everyone's stunned looks he shrugged. "Hey, God can change his mind too." He reasoned.

"So the end times will not be happening then?" Pastor Jim asked, looking incredibly excited, despite his calm tone.

"Not any time soon, at least." Gabriel said. "These things take preparing, it won't happen in your lifetimes. That is, if Michael doesn't manage to 'fix' things first." Gabriel warned.

"Michael… Do you mean the same mentioned in Revelation?" The Pastor asked. Gabriel nodded.

"The second in command, now the head honcho, since Dad's decided to play 'Where's Waldo.' He's not too happy with the change of plans, so he's going to try and fix things and get them back on track." Gabriel said.

"And you intend to stop him?" Pastor Jim asked. "Why?"

Gabriel shrugged. "I don't know. I'm not too fond of the adults I've met so far, but I like the Winchester kids, and they're the ones that matter, so I'll help you keep them safe."

The pastor nodded, taking everything in and formulating a plan to help Gabriel in his mission. Ellen placed a hand on his shoulder.

"So you believe this guy about being an angel?" She asked incredulously.

"Yes." Pastor Jim said. "His explanation actually explains some things for me as well." He said, stroking his chin. When everyone gave him a curious look he chuckled lightly. "I have some psychic abilities that allow me to communicate with the other side. They were expressing… concerns about some recent ruckus that was being stirred." He explained. "They were talking about creatures they had never seen before taking human vessels and rallying on earth." He said. "I was very worried we were dealing with a new breed of demon. I'm quite relieved to hear it is only angels, even if they are after the Winchesters." He said.

"Angels aren't all good will and halos, Pastor." Gabriel warned. "They'll do anything, and I mean _anything_ to get things back on track, so don't be surprised if they act just as bad as demons." Gabriel explained. "It's sad, really. We're created to protect humans, but we'll plow through them to set plans right if it's necessary."

Pastor Jim nodded gravely. "I will keep that in mind." He said.

They were all interrupted by the jingle of the bell on the door downstairs, alerting them to the presence of a customer. Ellen went to greet them, but was intercepted by a teenage boy bounding up the stairs past her. She shouted at him to stop, but he ignored her, stopping short in the doorway of the room the rest of the group was in. "Castiel!" He shouted.

"Balthazar?" Castiel replied. "What are you doing here? How did you find us?" He asked, approaching the other child with concern. Balthazar was more of a mess than usual, looking as if he'd run a mile.

"Exactly." Balthazar said cryptically. Then turning to Gabriel, he nodded his head in respect before returning his attention to Castiel. "If you intend to defy them, then you need to leave. If I've found you, they can't be far behind."

"How?" Castiel asked, even as Balthazar ushered the entire group into the room with him.

"Phone lines, your friend over there wasn't exactly discreet about why she was contacting your pastor friend." Balthazar said with annoyance. "Honestly. Michael has eyes and ears everywhere, and you allowed her to mention Gabriel's name over the phone? Of course that would attract attention."

Gabriel took action then, breaking off Balthazar's rant. "Okay, so we've been found. We need another place to go." He said, very businesslike. "Were you sent here for scouting?" Balthazar nodded. "You can't tell them we're not here?"

"I could, but I doubt they will believe me." Balthazar explained. "I am quickly losing Michael's trust." He explained. "They just sent me to assess if you were a danger."

"Disappearing often does that, Balthazar. I'm surprised you're being trusted at all." Gabriel said. "Anyway. We gotta go. You coming?" He asked Balthazar.

"I may not be as trustworthy as others, but I can still be your eyes on the inside." Balthazar explained. "So no, I will not be accompanying you. I'll report back and tell them you are still with them, however, it will slow Michael down as he will need to prepare."

Gabriel nodded in approval. "We need to not be here when they get here." He turned to Ellen. "Sorry, but you can't come. They won't hurt you if we're not here anyway. They'll try to act casual, so act clueless." He advised. Ellen nodded solemnly. "Alright, Balthazar, help everyone get packed. Cas, I need you to get Sammy and Dean into the car." Castiel and Balthazar nodded almost simultaneously and as Castiel picked up Sammy's carrier and grabbed Dean's hand, the Winchester's belongings began disappearing into suitcases.

Gabriel turned to John and Bobby. "I've got a hide-out in the middle of nowhere we can hide for a few days. At least until Pastor Jim gets to his church, then we'll crash at his place." Gabriel said. The pastor nodded, despite not actually being asked if that was okay.

"Okay. Why are we going to a church if we want to hide from angels?" John asked. Gabriel gave him his signature smirk.

"Exactly." Gabriel said vaguely, and then began to help Balthazar pack their bags.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: There probably won't be a chapter for next week and maybe not the week after. I've got finals coming up and I'm not sure how busy I'll be, so let's go ahead and say they'll be a two week delay and then another chapter. I've got up to chapter 36 written, so **

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><p>It was frightening how quickly the Winchesters and Bobby were up and out of the roadhouse, Gabriel disappeared in much the same way he appeared the few days previous, luckily there were not many people there, so it went unnoticed this time. Balthazar disappeared soon after that, leaving Ellen and Pastor Jim alone with baby Jo.<p>

"I sure hope they'll be alright." Ellen said, leaning up against the bar in the kitchen.

"I'm sure they will be fine, they just need to exercise a great deal of caution." Pastor Jim comforted. "They have Gabriel with them, and he seems like a very powerful being." He added thoughtfully. He then chuckled. "It also seems like they will be staying at my church, so I better head back there."

"Sorry for calling you all the way out just to have you head straight back." Ellen apologized, looking sheepish. "I didn't know it was going to be such a problem." She said.

"Not at all. I like traveling. You know that." Pastor Jim replied kindly. "Well then, I'll call you later to check up on you, when I get back to the church." He said, then exited the kitchen, Ellen trailed behind him. They were greeted by man, tall and dark skinned, wearing a pristinely groomed suit and standing with the sort of authority military officials would.

"Hello_, sir_." Ellen greeted. She had a sneaking suspicion that she knew who this man was. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you come in. Can I help you with something?" She asked with false kindness. Pastor Jim played it casual as well, heading for a table and sitting down. He pulled out a small black Bible and began to study it intensely.

"I am looking for the Winchesters." The man stated, looking at Ellen with disgust. "Where are they?" Ellen frowned, but didn't get aggressive.

"They left a few days ago." Ellen said coolly. "Said they couldn't stay long, had a drink then left." She lied easily. It was an easy cover story, one she had reported to cops when she was harboring hunters hiding from the law.

"I see." The man commented, looking around the bar. "Did they tell you where they were going?" He asked. He kept looking around, casting glances at Pastor Jim and his book and then to the upstairs area.

"No." Ellen replied firmly. "May I ask why you're asking?" She then said, hoping that if she managed to catch the man without reasoning, he would leave.

The man shook his head. "No, you may not." He said. Ellen stared at him, shocked by the bluntness. "Is there a problem?" He asked, noticing her facial expression.

"No." Ellen said. "Can I get you anything, or did you just come for the Winchesters?" She asked. She desperately wanted this man to leave.

"No." The man said. Then walked past her to head upstairs.

"Where do you think you're going?!" Ellen demanded as the man began walking up the steps. "That's private, no unauthorized people allowed." She said.

"I have more than enough authority to allow me up the stairs." The man insisted. "I am Raphael. I will not harm you if you do not resist." He said this with a great deal of authority. Pastor Jim looked up from his book and observed the now confirmed angel carefully.

"Ellen, he just wants to have a look around." Pastor Jim said carefully, trying to get Ellen to comply. He wouldn't find anything up there, and allowing him to look would keep Ellen from getting hurt.

"Fine, but when you're done, leave." Ellen called after the retreating angel.

"Of course." Raphael replied. He did just that.

Meanwhile, Gabriel and his charges appeared just outside of an old cabin. It was cold and there was snow on the ground. The cabin in question was small, but when they entered inside of it, it seemed anything but. It was incredibly luxurious, with a large main room and a hallway that led deeper into the house. The main room was richly furnished and warm, with a fire in the hearth, popping and crackling. There were wards clearly visible around the room, ones Bobby recognized as concealing wards and others he didn't recognize at all. Gabriel ushered them in proudly.

"Welcome to my humble abode." Gabriel said proudly. "This is where we'll be staying for a while." He announced.

"This seems fairly secluded, so why only a while?" John asked, casting a critical eye around the house.

"I'm pretty sure Michael knows about this place." Gabriel said automatically. "I've seen angels wandering around this place before, but there aren't any here now, so it's safe." He assured. "I don't want to push our luck though."

"Gabriel, why do you have such a place…?" Castiel asked, looking around.

"When you live on earth, you gotta have a place to call home." Gabriel told him. "It isn't like Heaven where you can rest wherever you want." He explained. "Well, I guess you could, but it's not very comfortable, and people tend to call you names."

Castiel nodded in understanding. Gabriel snapped his fingers and their bags were now in the room. "I don't plan to leave the house until we actually leave for good, so make yourselves comfortable, I guess." With that he disappeared. No one was sure where, as when they went searching the house for him, they couldn't find him.

It was obvious Gabriel has somehow prepared them rooms, each of them got a separate room that Gabriel had tailored to their tastes. They stopped at Castiel's room first, made obvious by the fact that his name was etched in Enochian into the door. His room was a soft, off-white color, the bed had dark blue sheets and there was a large cushy chair in one corner with a T.V. and a book shelf in the other. His room also had an unusual amount stuffed animals in it and no one had taken Castiel as the stuffed animal type. Castiel had told them that Jimmy was fond of the stuffed toys, not him, but John caught Castiel snuggling with a rather large one in a chair in the corner of his eye later that day.

When they came to Dean's door, it was obvious, as the door bore his name, though this time in English. Dean's room was a soft green color, with a nightlight on the wall that gave off a warm yellow glow when the light was off. Like in Castiel's room, it had a T.V. and a bookshelf full of children's books. There was also a desk with art supplies, which John found to be odd. Dean had not been one for arts and crafts, but maybe Gabriel was trying to spark some sort of affinity for it in him by providing the supplies. Or perhaps he just thought Dean would get bored with just books to read. Either way, it made John frown.

John's and Bobby's rooms were very similar, the same kind of door as Dean's, with a desk, T.V. and a bookshelf. They were a lot less childish though, no nightlights or stuffed animals, and upon inspection, all of the books were on Supernatural lore, nothing on angels, much to Bobby's chagrin, though.

Sammy had his own room as well, though it was only a nursery, with plenty of baby toys and pillows. After an inspection by John, they found it would also be safe enough to leave Sammy in there to play if they blocked the door.

In the hallway, along with the four rooms, there were two large bathrooms, and one locked door with similar letters to the ones etched on Castiel's door. Castiel said it read Gabriel, so they all assumed that was where he had disappeared off to. With no answer when they knocked on the door, they set to entertaining themselves by exploring the rest of the house. Dean and Castiel found a door to the basement after moving the rug in the living room and opening a hidden door. The basement didn't have anything particularly interesting however, just rows and rows of bookshelves that only held books written in foreign languages. Castiel grabbed several books off the shelves and settled into the main room to read.

The others continued exploring, soon finding a kitchen that held way too much candy, yet another bathroom, this one much larger with a large shower, a study that looked like a tornado had run through it and a small gaming room, that looked a lot like an arcade. It was very strange that so many things fit into one small house.

When they returned to the living room, Gabriel was back, Sammy in his lap and speaking to Castiel in Enochian. It didn't sound like they were fighting, just talking and John could make out a few names, mainly 'Balthazar' and 'Michael.' When they came in, Gabriel nodded at them, but didn't acknowledge them beyond that, still speaking with Castiel. John was content to allow the two to have their conversation, but Bobby cleared his throat.

"When are _we_ going to be able to communicate in tongues?" Bobby asked sarcastically, arms crossed.

"Never." Gabriel replied firmly. He ruffled Castiel's hair and stood. "You're really rude, you know that? And that's saying something. I thought I was the king of rude." Gabriel didn't sound much like he was joking.

Bobby ignored him, opting to ask. "What's the plan?"

"We lay low here for a while, and once Pastor Jim gets back to his church and gets harassed by the angels, we head there." Gabriel explained simply. "One good thing about Michael is he that he assumes everyone is more stupid than he is, so he won't expect us to come back to a place he's checked."

"Then why don't we go back to my house?" Bobby asked. "Or the Roadhouse."

"Because your house will be actively watched. As far as they are concerned, that's our home base." Gabriel said. "Why not go back to the Roadhouse? Because Ellen doesn't like me, and there are too many hunters that go through there for my liking." He then held Castiel close to his chest. "And they defiled poor Castiel…" He cooed, petting Castiel's head. "Introducing him to the sin of gambling…" Castiel huffed indignantly.

"As if you are one to talk, Gabriel." Castiel muttered, looking away. "I merely gambled. From the looks of this house, you have partaken in every form of cardinal sin." Castiel admonished, a little louder this time.

"Come on! How else am I going to make my brothers mad?" Gabriel joked lightly. Castiel didn't seem very amused, and Bobby rolled his eyes at their antics.

The rest of the day was characterized by Gabriel disappearing from time to time, leaving the Winchesters and Bobby to their own devices. Bobby asked Castiel if he would teach them Enochian at one point, which Castiel adamantly refused, and then disappeared when Bobby pressed the matter. Dean had taken up coloring in Castiel's absence, drawing pictures of himself and Castiel in various places; sitting on the couch, in the back of what looked like the Impala and sitting at what John could decipher as the Roadhouse, by Dean's sloppy handwriting. Sammy was thoroughly enjoying his nursery, and Bobby had been trying to read one of the books Castiel had grabbed for three hours.

John didn't understand why they couldn't just stay here. The house was secluded enough, and even if Michael knew the place existed, there would be no way they could find them with all the warding, right? He plopped himself down onto the couch and relaxed, allowing himself to enjoy the peace for at least a while. Gabriel continued to appear and disappear for the remainder of the afternoon, usually not saying anything when he came back. Finally, when it looked to be relatively dark outside, Gabriel returned for the night, settling himself onto the couch next to John and huffing out a sigh.

"Where have you been disappearing off to?" John asked, trying to make conversation. Gabriel cast him a sidelong glance.

"Warding mostly, and checking up on the folks at the Roadhouse to make sure they're okay." Gabriel said tiredly. "They're good, by the way, Raphael must not have found anything incriminating."

"Is flying still hard?" John asked, noticing how very drained he looked.

"Concerned?" Gabriel asked, sounding shocked. "And yes, Raphael did a number on me, as much as I don't want to admit it." He said, casting a glance around the room to make sure Castiel couldn't hear. "My grace has been damaged. It will heal, but it will take some time." He explained. "Don't tell, Cas. He'll start worrying, and that doesn't help anyone."

John nodded and Gabriel stood up. "It's dinner time." He declared loud enough for the house to hear and then making his way into the kitchen. Dean and Castiel wondered out of Sammy's nursery, Castiel carrying the baby gently and Bobby poked his head out of his room's door. John waited for them to catch up with him before they made their way into the kitchen as a group.

They entered the room to find Gabriel standing behind a table with a mountain of food on it. He grinned proudly. "Help yourself! Plates are on the counter over there." He said happily, then proceeded to get his own. Bobby frowned suspiciously at the amount of food on the table, but when Dean and Castiel helped themselves as if nothing strange was happening; he supposed that this was common place for angels, or Gabriel. John couldn't figure out how Gabriel made so much food in the five minutes that had taken them to walk to the kitchen. Gabriel kept explaining it as the power of his grace, a fact supported by Castiel's nodded head, but he couldn't quite wrap his mind around the concept.

Once they were finished eating, they retired to the living room and with Gabriel's insistence they all watched two movies before Dean fell asleep on Castiel's shoulder. Gabriel then declared it time for bed and oversaw John carefully carrying Dean and Sam to bed, followed by Castiel retiring to his own room. Gabriel disappeared after that, the sound of his door shutting permeating the hallway, followed by the click of the door locking. Figuring Gabriel wanted everyone to go to sleep, John and Bobby also retired and soon the house was quiet.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>

** (No cliff hanger for our possible two week break. Aren't I nice?)**


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: I'm so much busier now that I'm on break, it makes me a little sad. **

**Anyway, here's the next chapter. I'll try to update on Christmas, if I have time. There won't be a super special chapter for Christmas or anything, but I guess updating early would make a nice gift.**

**Thank you for all your follows, favorites and reviews! I'm nervous about this chapter, so let me know what you think.**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>Castiel lay awake, even after everyone else went to bed, he could not sleep. Dean was sleeping soundly, Gabriel seeing to that with a touch of his grace that only Castiel noticed. Sammy would rest all night, as was his usual habit. However, Castiel could not sleep. He tried talking to Jimmy, but he found the soul to be sleeping as well, peaceful and comfortable. Castiel couldn't quell the anxiety in his stomach though, so he got up.<p>

He made his way out of his room quietly and down through the hall. He stopped outside Gabriel's room, debating on whether or not to check to see if his brother was awake, but decided against it. Gabriel was still suffering from the wound Raphael inflicted upon him, no matter how much he acted like it wasn't affecting him.

Moving away from Gabriel's door and into the living room area of the house, he made his way to the window, peeking out between the shades. It was dark, but he could see something in the distance among the trees. It looked to be walking towards the house, and Castiel's heart jumped into his throat, effectively startling Jimmy awake.

_What's happening? _The boy asked groggily. Castiel carefully closed the shade, despite his shaking hands and moved away from the window.

"Someone is coming." Castiel whispered. He didn't want to use his grace, for fear of alerting whatever was outside to his presence, so flying into Gabriel's room was not an option. He also couldn't quietly alert Gabriel to the danger, since his brother locked his door and calling to him would be too loud. Before he could think of an alternative plan, there was a knock at the door. Castiel panicked inwardly, holding his breath to stifle any unintentional noises he might have made.

_Did they find us? _Jimmy asked in fear. Castiel did not want to risk the noise of replying, so he shrugged. He tiptoed as quietly as he could away from the door and into the hallway, still keeping his eyes locked on the door and the unknown foe behind it.

There was another knock, and then. "Open this door, Gabriel, I know you are here." Castiel didn't recognize the voice as anyone he knew and the fear only increased. To his extreme panic, the lock on the door popped and the door handled turned, the figure letting itself inside. "I cannot sense you, Gabriel, but I know this is where you are. You would do well to answer." It was too dark to see the person clearly, but it was obvious from their voice that they were male. The shadows indicated that the person was fairly tall. Castiel gulped, he did not recognize this person. It was obvious that he had no grace, but somehow he had managed to open the door. Castiel retreated quietly into his room, not daring to close the door behind him for fear of noise.

Despite his best efforts, it seemed the man still heard him. "Is that you, Gabriel?" He asked. Castiel could hear the sound of his footsteps coming ever closer to his position. The light in the hallway flickered on and Castiel flinched away, retreating farther into the shadows of his room. "Gabriel, I'm not interested in playing 'Hide and Go Seek.'" The man said firmly and with annoyance. "Come out here. I need to speak with you."

_He sounds mad. _Jimmy commented, Castiel nodded, trying to keep his breathing from being too loud.

"Are there others here with you?" The man asked. That probably crossed him off as being angel or related to the Winchester manhunt. The footsteps stopped just outside his door. Castiel could see leather boots shining in the light spilling in from the hallway. He had managed to shove himself between the bookshelf and the wall, holding his breath and shuffling farther behind the bookshelf when the person entered the room. He could no longer see the man from his position, but the light in his room flickered on when the man entered. "Are there children here?" He heard the man mutter quietly. "I'm not going to hurt you, come out." The man demanded now, not loud enough to alert the whole house to his presence, but loud enough that Castiel knew he wasn't joking around. Despite this, he found himself rooted to the spot, Jimmy's fear overtaking his free will and causing him to hyperventilate. When the first harsh breath shattered the silence within the room, Castiel could practically feel the man's gaze turning towards his hiding spot.

_I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean too! _Jimmy apologized frantically. Castiel shook his head, assuring him silently that he was forgiven. He could hear the man making his way over to their hiding spot, they were running out of time. He prepared to fly to another room, perhaps the basement, and was just about in flight, despite the confines of his hiding spot when a hand grabbed him, practically plucking him out of the air by his shirt and pulling him out from behind the bookshelf. He came face to face with green eyes, lighter than Dean's, looking at him inquisitively.

"Hello. Where do think you're going?" The owner of the eyes asked him sarcastically, but not unkindly. "If you don't want to be found, letting off a large burst of energy like that is certainly not the way to go about it." He admonished. Castiel frowned at him. He realized the man was holding him by his pajama shirt at eye level, meaning that Castiel was a good couple feet off the ground. "You must be the little one I saw looking through the window." He commented.

"Put me down." Castiel demanded, proud of how strong he sounded, despite the way he felt.

"So it speaks?" The man commented wryly. "I can only assume you are another angel." He went on, before Castiel could say anything. "Do you know where Gabriel is?" He asked. It wasn't demanding or unkind, but Castiel still wrinkled his nose rebelliously at the man holding him. The man let out a sigh and set him on the ground gently. Being on the ground allowed Castiel a better look at the man. He was pale, with green eyes and black hair that was slicked back away from his thin face. He wore some form of armor, which struck Castiel as odd. He had never seen people in the present day walk around freely in armor. The only armor he had seen humans wear was on police officers and they concealed it. This man displayed his proudly. Over his armor, he wore a green cape that fanned out at his feet. He raised an eyebrow at Castiel's scrutiny. "Yes?" He asked cheekily.

"Who are you?" Castiel asked, a little less rude this time. The man wasn't being particularly aggressive, so there really wasn't a reason for him to be too.

"Loki." The man answered flatly. "And you?" He had gone from looking frustrated at Castiel to looking intrigued. Castiel's stomach twisted.

"I am Castiel." Castiel answered calmly. He didn't expect 'Loki' to recognize him, but the man's eyes widened and he smirked ever so slightly. "Are you the one Gabriel borrowed his name from?" Castiel asked, trying to ignore the man's amused stare.

"Yes. I suppose he is not using it anymore." Loki more stated than asked. "I need to speak to him. Where is he?" He asked, getting back to business.

"I don't know." Castiel answered. Loki sighed.

"Look. I do not intend to harm him." Loki explained, immediately understanding the reason for Castiel's silence. "It is a private matter, but not one that will put Gabriel in danger." He sounded annoyed, and Castiel's eyes widened.

"Are there angels following you too?" Castiel asked. Loki's amused look morphed into a full smirk.

"There were. I've managed to get rid of them for the time being." Loki assured.

Castiel opened his mouth to ask exactly what this man was visiting for, but was interrupted. "Who's that?" A small voice asked from the door. Castiel looked past Loki, as Loki turned around to see Dean standing in the doorway, bleary eyed and leaning on the frame for support, obviously not fully awake.

"This is Loki." Castiel answered automatically. Dean frowned at him, blinking sleep from his eyes and then looking at the mentioned man.

"I thought Gabe was Loki." Dean complained. Loki rolled his eyes.

"Gabriel was only borrowing my name for a short time." Loki explained to the child.

"Ooooooh…" Dean answered, sounding as if that explained everything. "Cas, why's he here?" Dean asked, cocking his head to the side and making his way into the room without invitation. Loki frowned, obviously miffed, but didn't say anything as Dean all but draped himself over Castiel in a hug, sighing softly.

"I do not know, Dean. More importantly, why are you awake?" Castiel asked, temporarily taking his attention away from Loki to assess Dean's condition.

"Had a bad dream." Dean explained. "I wanna sleep with you instead." Castiel nodded, leading Dean over to his bed and laying him down. Dean sighed and fell back asleep despite the lights being on and someone he didn't know in the room. Castiel doubted he would even remember the exchange in the morning.

"We should speak elsewhere." Castiel whispered and then exited the room, the lights flickering off behind them.

When they were in the kitchen, it was Loki who spoke first. "Who was that?" he asked. "Has Gabriel finally taken up kidnapping and keeping small children?" He seemed completely serious when he asked this.

"N-no." Castiel stuttered, wondering if Gabriel had ever seriously spoken about doing that with this man. "That is Dean Winchester. His father is staying here." He explained.

"Not for long though." Gabriel's voice floated from the kitchen doorway. "Ever heard of knocking, Loki? Or is that not a thing on Asgard?" He seemed annoyed, but not entirely angry. It made Castiel curious about the nature of their relationship.

Loki pouted. It was unexpectedly childish for someone his size. "I did knock. Twice." He said testily, crossing his arms. "Regardless, this is not only your house; I can come and go as I please." He commented. As if making that point, he sat himself gracefully into one of the kitchen chairs.

Gabriel sighed and sat down as well, leaving Castiel in a very awkward position before Gabriel grabbed him and set him in his lap. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, Loki… Because really, I am, but this is not the best time." He explained, unusually polite.

"I can see that." Loki looked pointedly at Castiel, prompting Gabriel to explain.

"Yeah, so you know that brother I told you about? The one that got sent on a mission from my Dad, well, this is him." Gabriel pointed to Castiel, still sat in his lap and looking quite mortified.

"Yes, we spoke earlier. This matters why?" Loki asked, apparently losing patience.

"Well, he kind of messed everything up about a certain prophecy." Gabriel explained. When Loki gave him an odd look he elaborated. "End of the world stuff, nothing major. For your dimension anyway." He said vaguely. Castiel looked confusedly up at him.

"Then I hardly see why this was worth mentioning." Loki said critically.

"Would you let me talk, Loki? For the love of Dad!" Gabriel exclaimed. Loki rolled his eyes and smirked.

"Gabriel, I realize you love to talk, and any other night that would be lovely, but right now I have… Other… obligations, so if you would make your explanation quick…" Loki said impatiently.

"Wait… What 'other' obligations?" Gabriel asked suspiciously.

"Nothing you need to be concerned about." Loki answered evasively.

"What are you doing, Loki?" Gabriel asked, suspicion prominent in his voice.

"Nothing that concerns _your dimension, _Gabriel. As you said 'nothing major.'" Loki said, waving a hand as if to wipe the conversation from Gabriel's mind. Gabriel frowned.

"Fine, whatever, if you get yourself killed, don't expect a rescue." Gabriel said indignantly.

"You wound me." Loki said sarcastically. "What has your brother got to do with angels following me around? Please elaborate." He said, returning to business.

"Angels are following you around?" Gabriel asked in surprise.

"Gabriel, you are using my name as an alias, of course they would follow me." Loki said impatiently. "They think I am you."

"Do you need help?" Gabriel asked worriedly. Castiel kept getting more confused by the minute.

"No. I was able to handle them well enough. They have no idea where I am now." Loki explained. "That is not important. What is important is _why _they are following me around, Gabriel." Loki said sternly, expecting an explanation. "What trouble have you gotten yourself into?"

"Blame Cas for being so adorable!" Gabriel yelped. "His pleading eyes dragged me into it!"

"What?" Castiel asked blankly. Loki rolled his eyes.

"So your brother meddled with a prophecy and now all of Heaven wants to kill you?" Loki asked, putting the pieces together on his own.

"Well, they want to catch Cas. I guess they want to kill me, I've been a thorn in their side for a pretty long time now, so…" Gabriel shrugged, not finishing his sentence.

"Ah." Loki said plainly. "Then I would ask that you no longer use my name as an alias, I do not need to be responsible for the destruction of two worlds." Loki said, resting his head on his hands.

"Destruction of—" Gabriel cut himself off for a moment. "Loki! What the hell did you do?!"

Loki looked away. "It is not what I did, it is what I plan to do." He said with a matter-of-fact tone. Castiel was looking rather horrified. Why was Gabriel speaking to this man?

"What do you 'plan to do,' Loki?" Gabriel demanded. "It better be damn good, because I'm not saving your sorry butt if you brother comes calling."

"It is… Not as if I have a choice." Loki said. Gabriel frowned, but allowed him to continue speaking. "It is either invade earth, or... Let's just say I would much rather succeed at an invasion and have a throne than be subjected to _that_." Loki said simply. "It is not you 'earth', so it is not your concern." He then added.

"You could just stay here…" Gabriel suggested sheepishly. "There's room, and no one has to know." He bargained.

"Your concern is touching, but I'm afraid it isn't that simple." Loki said. "I need to go now, they'll be wondering where I am."

"Wait a second, Loki!" Gabriel exclaimed. Loki stood and began to exit the room. Gabriel stood too, setting Castiel on the floor and following after him. "Loki, come on. You can't just drop a bomb like that and then just leave!" He said, grabbing hold of Loki's arm.

Loki wrenched out of his grip and continued towards the door. "I merely came to get an explanation and to find if you were still alive. Now that I have both pieces of information, I will be leaving." He explained calmly. Gabriel oozed irritation.

"Loki, despite what you _want _to think, I do care about you. Stay here." Gabriel said, grabbing Loki's arm again. "Who cares if it isn't that simple? Ditching Heaven wasn't that simple. Yeah they'll be consequences, but…" Gabriel trailed off. Loki extracted his arm from Gabriel's grasp, gentler this time. He seemed to have deflated from his usual regal air into something that was quite tired and sad.

"It is very complicated. Assuming I do not get myself killed, I will see you again after I have finished this task." Loki explained with a sad smile. He pat Gabriel on the shoulder, before disappearing from the room completely, leaving a Gabriel wallowing in worry and with a plane look of rage on his face. He stood like that for a while before Castiel approached him cautiously.

"Gabriel…" Castiel said, grabbing his hand. Gabriel allowed it, but didn't look to Castiel, still staring at the spot where Loki had been.

"I'll kill them, Cas." Gabriel said finally. He was dangerously quiet and raging inside. "If anyone kills Loki, I swear, I'll kill them." He said.

Castiel nodded, but didn't say anything. Suddenly, Gabriel's rage dissipated and Castiel found himself curious.

"What kind of relationship do you have with Loki?" Castiel asked cautiously. "Are you… Are you…" Castiel couldn't complete his sentence, turning red. Gabriel looked at him with wide eyes for a moment before bursting out laughing.

"No way! Oh Dad, no!" He said, laughing even harder and wiping tears from his eyes. "Just really, _really _old friends, Cas." He explained in between laughs. "We've known each other since before I 'officially' left Heaven." He giggled, but it tapered off at that point, realizing he might make John and Bobby wake up. He kneeled down in front of Cas. "Probably thought it was someone here to get us, huh Cas?" He said more than asked. "Sorry about that. I didn't expect him to visit for another couple of years." He said apologetically.

Castiel nodded. "It's okay, I should not have been up and out of bed anyway." Castiel said quietly.

"I know you don't sleep much, Cas. When we're here you don't have to sleep if you don't want to, there's plenty of stuff to do." Gabriel assured, patting Castiel on the head. "I know you've already been digging through mine and Loki's book collection. Help yourself to anything else too, okay?" He asked, noticing that Cas' cheeks had gone red.

"Okay." Castiel agreed. Gabriel gave Castiel one last pat and stood.

"Cool! Well, I'm heading back off to bed. That was exciting, but I'm tired now." Gabriel said with a clap. "See you tomorrow, Cas!" He said.

"Goodnight." Castiel said, just as Gabriel disappeared.

_Your family's really complicated, Cas. _Jimmy commented from the back of his mind, having hid himself there when Loki grabbed Cas.

"Yes." Castiel agreed, before heading off to his room to join Dean in bed.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>

**(That was all filler and I'm really sorry, but it happened and it was really fun to write and I hope you enjoyed it too. One thing about this, is the timelines are different between the two dimensions, and Supernatural's timeline lags behind the Marvel one. For those of you who are interested, I do plan to write a crossover oneshot that explains how Loki and Gabriel meet. I don't know when it will be finished though, oneshots tend to take me a while to write.)**


	36. Chapter 36

The next morning, Cas watched as Dean woke up, still having been unable to sleep. As expected, Dean didn't remember anything that had taken place the night previous. He looked at Castiel confusedly, then at his surroundings, then back at Castiel.

"You came in here last night because of a bad dream." Castiel explained to him calmly. Dean nodded, understanding what he had done. "You didn't seem fully awake." He added on.

"Sorry." Dean said timidly. His green eyes didn't leave Castiel's since there was really no other place for him to look.

"It's fine. I don't mind." Castiel assured with a soft smile. They were drawn out of their conversation by the sound of Sammy fussing and then the sound of Gabriel shushing him. Gabriel walked to Castiel's room to find both Dean and Cas there and he grinned.

"You guys want to go watch some cartoons?" Gabriel asked. When Castiel turned to look at him, he found that the archangel looked a lot more mussed than he had during the night. Despite having claimed to be going to sleep, he didn't look to have slept very much at all. He did not question it though, opting to get out of bed to allow Dean up. Dean nodded at Gabriel about wanting to watch cartoons and the three of them made their way into the living room. Gabriel disappeared into the kitchen, leaving them to watch while he cooked breakfast. To his dismay, Castiel followed him to the kitchen, having told Dean that he merely wished to speak to Gabriel. Castiel entered the kitchen and took a seat at the table, resting his head in his hands.

"Are you alright, Gabriel?" Castiel asked. He tried sounding casual, but it came out sounding just as worried as he felt.

"Yeah, just tired." Gabriel replied shortly. He focused on cooking and tried not to give away how he was actually feeling.

"You are cooking today." Castiel noted. Gabriel winced.

"I cook every day." Gabriel replied as casually as he could. "Who do you think puts food on the table?" He then added, trying to rile Castiel up and distract him.

"You know that is not what I mean." Castiel said firmly. Gabriel frowned, Castiel didn't take the bait.

"Of course not…" Gabriel sighed. "What do you want from me, Cas?" He asked, turning and placing his hands on his hips.

"The wound isn't healing, is it?" Castiel finally asked. He looked pointedly at Gabriel's side. "I can still feel the grace leaking out, despite the skin having closed." He said accusingly.

"It is healing, just… Not that fast." Gabriel defended, placing a hand protectively over the wound in his side. Castiel frowned and rested his head on his arms, a little frown wrinkling the space between his eyebrows.

"Because you keep expending grace to keep us safe." Castiel said after some thought. He sounded regretful. "It is my mission Gabriel. You should not feel obligated to help me."

"Shouldn't feel obligated?!" Gabriel repeated. "Cas, without me, you would be on lock down in Heaven and the Winchesters would have their memories wiped." He said angrily. "Your 'mission' would go uncompleted and the apocalypse would happen." He said. Castiel looked down at the table. "Besides, I'm in it for the long run now, aren't I?" He said, trying to alleviate Castiel's guilt. "There isn't any way I'm getting off the hook now, so I might as well help you."

"Still, you are straining yourself." Castiel said sadly. "You could die, Gabriel. I would be responsible." He said mournfully.

"If I die, I'm going to be the one responsible for it, Cas." Gabriel said angrily. "Besides, I'm not going to die."

"Of course…" Castiel conceded. The kitchen lapsed into silence then, only the sounds from the T.V and Gabriel cooking permeating the room. Castiel fell asleep then, head cradled in his arms. He dreamed of Heaven, and his brothers and then Gabriel, but not with him. Gabriel was with someone else, but smiling none-the-less.

Castiel woke with a start when a plate was set in front of him. He looked up to see Gabriel looking down at him. "Maybe tonight you actually try to sleep instead of letting my friends into the house, yeah?" He asked. John and Bobby came in then, enticed by the smells. Gabriel had set plates down for everyone and he waved to John and Bobby. "One of you needs to grab Sammy and tell Dean to get in here too." He said. At their confused looks he motioned to the table. "It's breakfast time." John nodded sleepily and made his way back into the living room, gathering Sammy into his arms and grabbing Dean's hand. Breakfast went by without very many issues. It seemed no one, but Castiel was disturbed by Loki's visit the previous night, which was reassuring, because Gabriel had no desire to explain his relation to Loki to any of the adults at the table.

Breakfast went by without relative incident. The looks Castiel kept casting towards Gabriel did not go unnoticed, but everyone knew better than to say anything. Eventually, the meal ended and Gabriel promptly disappeared, along with all the dishes. The door to his room was firmly locked and the Winchesters were once again left to their own devices. Dean planted himself with Sammy in front of the T.V. to watch the remainder of the cartoons that played for children in the morning, but lost interest when the news came on. Bobby went down to the basement with Castiel, who helped him pick out books he might understand. It appeared that not all of the books were written in Enochian, some were actually written in Japanese, German, Chinese, some forms of really old English and some old tomes bound in decaying leather in the farthest reaches of the basement were in what Bobby assumed to be some form of Old Norse. He wasn't sure though, it wasn't any dialect he'd ever come across.

When Castiel and Bobby disappeared into Gabriel's secret library, John decided he wanted to go for a walk, since Dean was entertaining Sammy. He went to the door and tried to open it, only to find it completely stuck; no amount of pushing or pulling would make it yield.

"Going outside right now is a bad idea." Gabriel's voice told him from behind, making him jump about a foot in the air. "There are angels outside. You can't see them though." He said. "Luckily, as long as you stay inside, they can't see you." He said, flicking the blinds of the shades up and peering out.

"Do they know we're here?" John asked, there was a hint of fright in his voice. Gabriel smirked.

"They think they do, but they won't find any proof." Gabriel said, flicking the blinds back down before sitting on the couch. "They'll leave when they can't find anything. Then we'll leave." He said firmly.

John came over and sat beside Gabriel, who had an uncharacteristically somber frown on his face. "Are you okay? You're acting strange." He asked in concern.

Gabriel's expression almost violently changed to one of neutrality, complete with a shake of the head. "Yeah." He said. He didn't particularly sound okay.

"Can I do anything?" John asked. He didn't particularly like Gabriel, but he was their ally, so…

Gabriel stood up with a huff. "Nope. Just keep your kids safe." He said. He disappeared again, and John could distantly hear the lock to his door click.

John remained on the couch for an hour or so after that, watching the news that had just come on. The anchor on the television had a hint of a European accent to his voice, so John assumed that wherever they were, it wasn't America. After the news ended, finishing with a vague story about some strange occurrence in a church in Amsterdam, John stood and looked out the window, mimicking Gabriel's method as he peeked through the shades. It had begun snowing, small white puffs piling onto the ground. He couldn't see the Impala from the window, so he assumed Gabriel had hidden it or made it invisible or whatever it was he did with large objects he didn't want found. He could also see strange disturbances in the air, amongst the falling snowflakes. Some would start falling at a slightly different angle when they reached a certain point, as if bending around an object. Maybe those were the angels Gabriel was talking about. He flicked the shades shut and turned to find Dean standing behind him.

He kneeled down to Dean's level and smiled at him. "Hey bud." He greeted. "What's up?"

Dean looked down at his feet bashfully, then back up at John. He fiddled with his hands for a moment before speaking. "Do you want to come draw with me and Cas?" He asked, he held up one of his hands to reveal a blue crayon. "Cas is a good drawer." He said, bargaining.

John thought about it for a moment, then finally. "Sure, yeah." He said absently. Dean grinned wide and toothy. He noticed Dean was missing one of his canine teeth. When did he lose it? He didn't have time to ask, as Dean grabbed his hand and led him to his bedroom where Castiel was sprawled on the floor with a large piece of paper working at one end meticulously with a red crayon. He looked up when they approached and smiled warmly at Dean.

"Daddy's going to draw with us." Dean said happily. He sat down at the other side of the paper and began scribbling with his blue crayon. Castiel nodded and went back to his side of the paper, replacing his red crayon for a yellow one.

"So… What are you drawing?" John asked, setting to work on drawing little geometric shapes.

"I'm drawing Cas!" Dean said proudly, showing John a little blue blocky figure with messy hair and wings. "I'm gonna draw you next. Just wait." He explained, before getting back to work on his portrait's blue feet.

Cas looked down with a blush. "Cas?" John asked, calling the angel's attention back to him.

"I-I'm drawing Dean." He said bashfully. "Though Dean says it does not look like him." He said. He leaned back from the drawing to show John. What John saw was certainly very pretty, but looked nothing like a human. It was basically a mass of spirals in various earthy tones except for very short streaks of mixed red and yellow.

"That's very pretty, Castiel." John said lamely. He wasn't sure if that was actually how Castiel saw everyone or if he was just really into abstract art. Either way, it was a bit disconcerting.

"Thank you." Castiel said, before getting back to work. He replaced the yellow crayon with a blue one and began sketching out what looked like feathers before switching to the yellow again. John turned his attention back to his drawings. He had a horribly drawn cube drawn in green, and he grabbed a red crayon to add a roof to it.

Eventually Bobby wandered into the room holding Sammy, and sat on the bed and watched them a while before heading out into the living room, muttering something about going stir crazy. Soon lunch rolled around and Gabriel appeared in the kitchen to cook and then serve the meal. Lunch was a lot less tense than breakfast, as Gabriel seemed to be in a bit better of a mood, though he still seemed rather melancholy. He disappeared soon after the meal, leaving the Winchesters alone again. The afternoon went very much like the morning, only instead of drawing, Dean had taken to pulling every book out of his bookshelf and attempting to read the titles. Castiel soon joined him and together they were working their way through some odd foreign fairy tales John had never heard of. After that, Dean fell asleep leaned up against Castiel, so Castiel asked John to fetch him his book from the living room, albeit with hesitance. John quickly brought the encyclopedia sized book with a gold engraved cover to Castiel.

"What's it about?" John asked, as he handed him the book.

Castiel looked hesitant to tell him for a moment and then whispered. "Another world." John raised an eyebrow, wanting to know more, but Castiel wouldn't elaborate. It was rather frustrating. Not wanting to wake Dean by questioning Castiel more, John made his way out of the room and to Gabriel's game room. It looked like an arcade and had many full sized games in it. He wondered aimless until settling in front of a machine that was black and yellow to fiddle with it. The game started up without a coin and he began shooting little polygonal figures on the screen. He had no idea how long he'd been playing before someone poked both his sides and shouted 'boo!' directly into his ear. He jumped harshly and whirled on the person, only to find Gabriel there.

"We can leave tomorrow evening. I've managed to draw the angels somewhere else." Gabriel reported proudly.

"Good, Bobby's going nuts being stuck inside all day." John said in return. Gabriel snorted.

"He's just butt hurt because I won't teach him Enochian." Gabriel said.

"Why not?" John asked, genuinely curious.

"Them's the rules." Gabriel remarked carelessly. He spun, overly theatrical towards the door to the room.

"So what? That just happens to be the one rule you follow?" John asked cheekily. Gabriel's figure tensed.

"There's a reason for that rule." Gabriel said darkly before exiting the room. John could hear him animatedly greeting Sammy and the baby's shrill and delighted giggles.

At dinner Gabriel told everyone what the plan was for the next day. Bobby had echoed John's earlier sentiments, and then commented about how he'll miss the book collection. Dean seemed a little sad to be leaving, and Castiel was indifferent, choosing to focus on cheering Dean up.

The night passed uneventfully, Castiel slept in Dean's bed. Sammy slept all night and there were no more visitors to the little home. Though Castiel, in the moments that he was awake during the night, could hear Gabriel wondering around the house restlessly.

The next day was spent packing anything Gabriel had given them that they found useful. Castiel returned his substantial pile of books back where he'd found them, and a quick peak into Dean's bag would reveal that he was hording all the paper his desk held along with all the crayons. Apparently Dean liked drawing, who knew?

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>

**(This was a bit of a transition chapter, but I hope you liked it anyway.)**


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: Sorry this is really late, I had a birthday and as a present I got a vacation. **

**Anyway, in addition to be really late, this is really short for certain reasons. The next chapter should be a lot longer, so forgive me please!**

**Thank you all for you favorites, follows and reviews. I hope you enjoy this chapter despite its length!**

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><p>After packing, John, Bobby, Castiel, Dean and Sammy all piled into the Impala waiting for Gabriel to fly them. Castiel kept casting worried looks at Gabriel before being scolded by the indignant archangel when he got caught. Afterwards he merely stared petulantly out the opposite window. They flew, much in the way they had before, a rush of vertigo and dizzying nausea and finally a rough, jarring landing just outside the church. Okay, the landing was new. Much to Castiel and John's relief, instead of kneeling on the ground, clutching his side, Gabriel was laughing up a storm, somewhere off to the side, having rolled away from the car after transport.<p>

At everyone's concerned look, Gabriel sat up and gave them thumbs up. "I almost hit a tree!" He exclaimed, by way of explanation. "I haven't done that in forever." He said before falling back again and laughing. Castiel did not seem nearly so amused, clumsy flying, especially while carrying others, was no laughing matter. However, Gabriel took no notice.

Pastor Jim wandered outside of his church timidly, drawn by the ruckus and grinned widely when he saw the Impala. He waved to them, and John got out to greet him. At that point, Gabriel recovered enough to help them move their stuff inside the church.

"There are a few spare rooms this way." Pastor Jim told them as he led them through the halls of his church. "Do not be afraid to make yourselves at home." He said, opening the first door and revealing a simple room with a bunk bed and two desks. "I was assuming Castiel and Dean will sleep in here, and I can get a crib from the church nursery, they won't miss it." He said. They set Dean and Sam's luggage outside the door. He opened the door next to the first revealing a room with two twin beds and another two desks. "And I was assuming you would sleep in here, unless you would like the bunk bed." He said with a chuckle. "I will get a mattress from the storage closet later for Gabriel." He said.

"No need." Gabriel said, crossing his arms. "I don't sleep, so I don't need a bed." He explained.

Pastor Jim looked slightly distressed by this revelation. "Oh… Well… Still…" He faltered, shrugging. Gabriel shrugged too, and they lapsed into an uncomfortable silence before Dean grabbed Castiel's hand and led him to their new room.

"You can have the top one." Dean whispered to Castiel. Castiel merely nodded, helping Dean lug his bag into the room. Bobby followed suit, pushing past John and into their room, setting their bags on the floor.

"There is church tomorrow." Pastor Jim began hesitantly. He knew religion seemed to be a touchy subject for them, but he was obligated to invite them. "If you would like to join us, you may. You don't have to though." He tacked on that last statement as an afterthought.

"No thanks." Bobby said gruffly from within his room.

"I would like to." Castiel's voice piped in from just outside his and Dean's door. "I have not attended a sermon in a long time." He explained.

Pastor Jim smiled at him warmly and nodded his head. He was a little nervous that an angel would now be attending his service, but he was no less pleased. "The first sermon begins at 8." He told him. He turned to Gabriel. "I will go get your mattress." And with that, he was walking briskly down the hall again, presumably towards a storage closet.

"Well, you going to come in here or what?" Bobby asked, as he set his stuff into their rightful places. John nodded and headed inside, but Gabriel stuck his tongue out before heading into the Dean and Castiel's room. "Where are you going?" Bobby called after him.

"I'm bunking with the kids!" Gabriel called back. Dean was elated. Bobby, however, was not.

As a result, it took a lot of coaxing and persuasion before Gabriel had Pastor Jim on his side and consequently the mattress in Dean and Castiel's room. Bobby had been angry and persistent, insisting that Gabriel 'stop acting like such a child' and 'listen for once, for God's sake,' but after Gabriel offered to sit in on Pastor Jim's sermon with Cas, he had won the battle.

The rest of the day was characterized by Gabriel wondering about the church with Dean and Cas and putting up wards. Pastor Jim had asked that he keep them hidden, so he had been moving pictures and tapestries to put up wards or seal a door. Some of the spots he needed to put wards in were too out in the open, so he recruited Dean and Cas to come up with creative ways to hide them. One way ended with Castiel's sleeve, along with sixteen offering envelopes stapled to the church's front door. Gabriel had helpfully collapsed to the floor laughing when Castiel requested assistance, and the resulting clamor had drawn Pastor Jim, Bobby and John to the scene. None of them helped Castiel as quickly as the fledgling would have liked, too busy laughing or looking exasperated to really concentrate on removing the fabric of his sleeve from the door.

Eventually Castiel was unstuck, Gabriel finished putting up wards, and the sun was beginning to set, casting a gentle orange glow around the naturally lit church. Gabriel disappeared into the church kitchen to 'cook' for everyone, including Pastor Jim, before they all sat down and ate. Pastor Jim left when the sun went down to go home. He offered to stay the night at the church with them, but Gabriel had adamantly refused, claiming it would be much too suspicious.

Everyone settled down to sleep soon after Pastor Jim left. Much to Castiel's surprise, Gabriel fell asleep quickly. Either that, or he was quite good at faking. Dean was soon to follow, muttering a quiet goodnight to Castiel before dropping off to sleep. Castiel was left awake and staring at the ceiling for a while, but thankfully felt himself starting to doze just as the moon slid into the right position to cast its borrowed light through the blinds on the window. Before Castiel knew it, it was morning and Gabriel was shouting happily and stretching. He nudged Castiel and winked at him.

"Had a good night's sleep?" He asked cheerfully. Without waiting for an answer, he continued. "Church is in two hours, let's go cook before anyone shows up." He said, patting Castiel on the back.

Castiel climbed down from the bunk bed with Gabriel's help and together they made their way into the kitchen. The church was busy with people, despite it being two hours before the first service. There wasn't any sign of Pastor Jim, but Gabriel figured he would be preparing for the sermon. He sighed inwardly. He didn't want to sit in on a sermon, even if he somewhat liked the man delivering it, but it did win him a bed in the kids' room, so he would suffer through it.

Gabriel looked down to see Castiel casting glances around at the people that bustled past. He nudged Cas a little to draw his attention.

"What cha' thinking about, Cas?" Gabriel asked, smiling as Castiel's brow furrowed in thought.

"Church seems to be a very complicated affair." He replied thoughtfully. Gabriel chuckled.

"A lot of things humans do are complicated, Cas." He said, by way of explanation. Castiel nodded, seemingly accepting Gabriel's vague answer.

They finally reached the kitchen, only to find it swarming with people. They looked at the two angels disapprovingly as they entered, and Castiel made to walk back out, but Gabriel grabbed his hand. He smiled cheerfully at the cooks, who all went back to work as soon as they realized that collective glaring was not going to rid them of the two intruders. Gabriel led Castiel over to a row of cabinets, opened one and summoned a box of cereal that he then feigned pulling out of the cabinet. No one in the room batted an eyelash. He then wondered to one of the counters and surreptitiously swiped the gallon of milk sitting there, retreating from the kitchen quickly and quietly. Once they got out, he started giggling.

"Got milk, Cas?" Gabriel asked, brandishing the milk carton. "'Cause they sure don't," he laughed. Castiel glared at him disapprovingly.

"You did not need to steal their milk; you could conjure your own." Castiel scolded.

"But did you see the way they looked at us? They wouldn't be so snotty if they knew who I really was." Gabriel said. Castiel continued to look at him disapprovingly and Gabriel shrugged. "I'll bring it back. Might as well use it while we have it though." With that, he sat Castiel down at one of the tables just outside of the kitchen and proceeded to make himself and Castiel bowls of cereal, 'pulling' the bowls out from underneath the table so as not to attract unnecessary attention. Needless to say, it did not have the desired effect, merely grabbing glances from other people sitting in the table area who saw him lean under the table empty handed and stand back up theatrically with a pair of bright blue bowls in his hands.

Eventually the bustle in the kitchen slowed down and some people emerged from the room carrying coffee and cookies. Gabriel snagged a cup of coffee for himself and cookies to share with Cas and bring back to the room for Dean.

When it was about fifteen minutes until eight, the kitchen completely cleared out, all the cooks having gone out to grab seats for the service. Gabriel returned the milk and then walked with Castiel to the main sanctuary, where Pastor Jim would be preaching. They grabbed a seat in the middle, since Castiel refused to sit in the back and conversely, Gabriel would not sit in the front. Pastor Jim managed to catch Gabriel's eye as they sat and smiled warmly. He began setting out his papers and Bible as everyone took their seats and got settled.

Pastor Jim looked over his congregation, waiting patiently for everyone to quiet down and get ready to listen. Once the room had reached his preferred level of quiet, he cleared his throat.

"God has placed it on my heart to speak about the different kinds of love this morning." He began. Gabriel rolled his eyes, an action that earned him a kick from Castiel. "In Greek there are four different words for love; Eros, Philia, Storge, and Agape…" Gabriel allowed himself to be lulled into the familiar message and settled himself more comfortably into the pew. He and Cas had heard this lesson taught from God Himself, but still, there was a sort of familiarity with hearing it again, even if it was from another voice. Pastor Jim continued speaking easily, Castiel shifted closer to him, and Gabriel felt peaceful for the first time in a long time.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>

**(about Pastor Jim's sermon, I was only ever taught about the three types of love Eros, Philia and Agape, but my research on Google turned up four. I'm sorry if I'm wrong. Although the addition of a forth makes more sense than just three, if you look up what they mean.)**


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: I swear I'd update more often if I wasn't in class until 6:30 in the evening. I also don't have as large of a gap to devote to writing either, so this is literally freshly written. I'm sorry! I'm trying! **

**Regardless, thank you all for your support, reading and reviewing and everything else! I hope you enjoy!**

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><p>Dean woke up after church started, startled awake less by the noise and more by the lack thereof. During the service the church was almost completely silent. He climbed out of bed and checked on Sammy, still sleeping away despite the sun lighting up the room. Deeming him safe enough to be left alone, he quietly opened the door and peeked out into the hallway, finding it completely deserted. He snuck over to the next door, the one that held his daddy and Bobby, and pressed his ear against the door, hearing soft snores. This left Dean with a few options for his morning, wake his daddy and Bobby up to get his breakfast, try to find his own, or wait until they woke up. After his stomach growled, he found the second option of the three to be the most appealing and set off in the direction he remembered the kitchen being in.<p>

He took a detour to wonder near the closed sanctuary doors, opposite the front. Both sets of doors were tightly closed and the hallway between them completely empty, so Dean took the opportunity to press his ear to one of the sanctuary doors. He frowned when he really couldn't hear much of the sermon, just some vague shuffling noises and Pastor Jim's voice, too muted to make any actual words out of. He wondered where Cas was sitting. He should have gone to church too, Cas probably would have liked that.

He really liked it when Cas was happy.

But then his daddy might get mad at him. Ever since Mommy died, daddy hadn't liked church or God or angels too much anymore.

Dean frowned. His stomach growled. He really needed to go find breakfast.

Dean removed his ear from the door, just in time to hear the front door of the church wiggling. He turned as it began to rattle against its frame. He backed away down the hall slowly just as there was a high pitched ringing that slowly grew in volume and intensity. He clamped his hands over his ears and collapsed to his knees, squeezing his eyes shut as anything made of glass around him shattered and rained down on him. He could hear the front door rattle more and then the doors to the sanctuary burst open.

"Cas, stay there." Dean heard Gabriel say. "Michael! Stop it!" He was then scooped off the floor. Opening his eyes, he saw Gabriel staring down at him, face stern and determined. He had one hand holding Dean's head, fingers at his temple and the other cradling his body. "You okay there, Deano?" Gabriel asked him, but did not wait for a reply; instead he flew into the sanctuary, sitting him next to Cas. "Stay there." He commanded them, before promptly disappearing. The sanctuary doors slamming shut hard enough to knock the poster advertising foreign ministries off and Gabriel's ward to be fully revealed.

After gaining his bearings again, Dean glanced around himself. Castiel was crouched next to him, mouth twisted into a determined frown and a short silver blade clutched in one fist. The people that filled the sanctuary were all collectively unconscious, some with blood leaking out of their ears, either Gabriel or the noise having knocked them out. Pastor Jim was slumped over his podium, unconscious as well. Behind the sanctuary doors there was a loud, but muted screeching and the sounds of a struggle.

"Dean, be ready to make an escape." Castiel warned, reaching over to him as a particularly loud crash was heard and the sanctuary door rattled. Light flashed underneath the door and Dean could hear the distant roll of thunder.

"Where are we going to go?" Dean asked. "Gabriel said that angels can't go past the wards."

Castiel cast a glance about the room. "We'll move farther in. Find a place to hide." Castiel said. He grabbed Dean's hand and they slowly made their way farther into the sanctuary. After a careful look around the stage, Castiel spotted a door nestled behind some curtains, most likely leading to the baptismal. They went through it and quickly made their way through the hallway to find changing rooms for those being baptized. Castiel moved to the door and began burning one of Gabriel's wards into it. "We should be safe here for now." Castiel reported, returning to Dean's spot. "If they break through, we can move farther inside."

Dean nodded and flinched as a particularly hard crash shook, seemingly, the entire church. Ancient dust hiding on the lighting fixtures rained down upon them, coating both of them. Dean giggled upon noticing that it showed up brightly in Castiel's hair, the little gray specks starkly contrasting the dark brown and making it look like Castiel had been out in the snow. Castiel smiled at him warmly.

There was another rumble, a crack of thunder and then another high pitched ringing noise. Castiel quickly placed both of his hands over Dean's ears and cocked his head to listen. When the ringing passed, he removed his hands and whispered. "Raphael has been sent to search for us." He ushered Dean farther into the room to the door leading farther into the baptismal area as the handle began to turn on the marked door. Quietly, Castiel turned the handle of the opposite door and pushed Dean outside as the other door began to rattle against its frame. "Go! I'll follow, but I need to mark this door first." Castiel said, giving Dean a little push to get him going. Dean followed directions, turning his head to see Castiel slamming the door shut and burning another ward into the wood before sprinting after him. He quickly caught up to Dean despite the boy's head start and grabbed his hand. The door had led to a hallway that was filled with more and more doors. Each one opened obediently as Castiel and Dean ran by, but Castiel didn't run into any of them. Soon they were at the end of the hall and ran through, the now open, door that led to stairs. They ran down the small flight, coming to another door that had a sign on it claiming that only authorized personnel were allowed. Castiel unsurprisingly ignored the sign and sprinted in.

It seemed that this was where Pastor Jim kept all of his hunting supplies, as the room was full of weapons. Castiel slammed the door behind them, jarring the contents of the room and causing a few daggers to fall from their holders on the wall. He burnt another ward into the door and sighed.

"What's wrong, Cas?" Dean asked, coming over to the angel, now leaning against the door and looking both worried and tired.

"Nothing." Castiel said, not meeting Dean's eyes. "I am just tired." He explained.

"They won't find us in here?" Dean asked worriedly, as the ceiling shook with whatever was going on above them.

Castiel cast a glance upwards. "I… No." He said hesitantly. He didn't seem particularly sure, but he did say he was tired, so Dean didn't push it. Dean grabbed Castiel's hand and led him further into the room. There was a devil's trap painting skillfully onto the floor. Sadly, it wouldn't help them much at the moment. He sat Castiel down in the middle none-the-less and went to grab a container of salt off of one of the many shelves in the room. He made a circle around them, just like his daddy had taught them and then sat himself in the middle. He grabbed Castiel's hand. The angel who had been previously staring mournfully up at the ceiling turned his gaze to him.

"We'll be okay." Dean said with determination. Castiel nodded, a small frown on his face. "Is Jimmy okay?" Dean asked in a feeble attempt to take Castiel's mind off of the situation. Castiel closed his eyes for a moment before replying.

"He's taken refuge in my grace for the time being. I'm too strong for him to accidentally take control." Castiel explained.

"Is it comfy?" Dean asked. Castiel cocked his head at him, apparently not understanding the question. "Your grace," he paused, he had to think about the word for a second. Gabriel and Castiel used that word a lot, but Dean still wasn't sure what it meant. "Is it comfy?" Dean finished finally.

"Ah… I believe so." Castiel said, after thinking for a moment. "Jimmy has described it as being… warm." He explained. Dean nodded in understanding.

There was another great crash from above and Dean snuggled closer to Castiel as the walls shook. They sat like that for a long time, until there was a knock on the door. Castiel immediately stiffened, casting a glance at Dean, who snapped his hands over his mouth.

"Dean? Cas?" John's voice floated through the door. Castiel stood up and Dean followed. The person behind the door felt like John, but how would he know they were down here? Castiel grabbed the back of Dean's shirt.

"Shh…" Castiel whispered to him. "We don't know if that is really him." He explained when Dean shot him a betrayed look. Dean swallowed and nodded.

The door handle wiggled, but the door did not open. Had Castiel locked the door? He couldn't remember.

"Dean! It's your Dad, bud. Open the door!" John called. The door handle wiggled some more, and there was the sound of John throwing himself against it a few times before he gave up with a mutter too muffled by the door.

Dean had tears in his eyes, absolutely sure that his father would be furious at him for not answering when he called. Castiel did have a point, though. There was no way to know it was really him. About five minutes after it seemed as if John had left, Castiel made his way to the door and turned the handle.

John was half way down the hall, but when the door opened he turned. "Dean!" He shouted, upon seeing Dean and Castiel make their way into the hall. Castiel still kept his guard up, hand tightly clasped in Dean's as they walked towards John. "You were in there all along." He sounded relieved. Dean came up and gave him a hug. The church gave another great shake and John released Dean and grabbed his hand. "We should get out of here. Gabriel cleared a way for us to escape." Dean nodded and grabbed Castiel's hand.

"Where is Sammy?" Castiel asked. Dean nodded in agreement.

"Bobby already has him in the car. He's waiting for us." John said, without looking at either of them. They quickly made their way through both doors Castiel had marked before. He noted, rather sheepishly, that he had left quite a trail. It was clear to anyone where their final location had been. No wonder John had found them so quickly.

"What's the matter, Castiel? John said, looking at him in concern. Castiel looked down at his feet.

"I noticed that our hiding place might not have been the most effective." Castiel said honestly. They had made it to the sanctuary now, still full of unconscious people. "Is Gabriel outside?" He asked.

"Yes. He's waiting for us by the car." John replied. He led Castiel and Dean a bit quicker through the rows of unconscious church goers. The church had settled now. It seemed whatever fighting had been going on, Gabriel had managed to end it.

When they approached the sanctuary doors, John reached out and opened it, herding Dean and Castiel behind himself before peeking his head through the doorway. Castiel caught a glance of someone's legs lying just beyond the door. John led them out to reveal a few more unfortunate and unconscious church workers lying prone on the ground, more blood leaking out of their ears. Dean held Cas' hand tighter as they made their way to the church's front doors, that were hanging ajar in their frames. John led them outside, Castiel spared a glance behind them to worry for Pastor Jim before Dean's cry of alarm caused him to look forward again.

"Gabriel!"

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>

**(At this moment in time, I feel that a cliff hanger is an awful thing to do, especially when I'm not sure if I'll be able to update next week, but my first exam is Friday, so hopefully I'll have more free time on Saturday or Sunday to update.)**


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N: I swear all my college teachers get together and plan the exact week that they all will assign papers and have exams because that's what happened for the past week or so. I'm done now, though. I don't have another exam until the 5th and 10th of March, so that's nice.**

**Also happy Ragnarok! Where I live, the end of the world is currently a nice 60 degrees Fahrenheit and sunny. **

**Thank you for all your reviews, favorites and follows, Here's another chapter!**

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><p>On the ground, with one arm outstretched and the other crumpled underneath himself, lay Gabriel. Dean was the first to shout his name in surprise and worry, followed closely by Castiel. John spared a glance at Castiel and it was only then that he realized that there was something slightly off about John. His eyes were almost too bright and held an expression that Castiel was all too familiar with, just not on John.<p>

It was Michael. Upon this realization, Castiel snatched Dean away from the other angel, using his wings to fly them the short distance to Gabriel. He prayed to his Father that Gabriel wasn't dead as they landed, sparing a few moments to check him for blood. He found a small amount, staining the area just under Gabriel's sternum crimson with blood, but no grace. He could only pray that was a good sign, as Castiel had never seen one of his brothers die. He didn't know what to look for. Surely there was a way to tell. He didn't have much time to ponder this as Michael was upon them in a moment, Dean letting out a cry of surprise. Castiel looked around desperately for a way to protect Dean before his eyes landed on an angel blade, Gabriel's angel blade. He shot forward and grabbed it before summoning his own, then quickly thrust himself in front of Dean to protect him, flaring his wings.

"Stay back!" Castiel warned, brandishing his and Gabriel's angel blades. "You will not hinder the work of God!" He declared.

"It is you who is hindering." Michael replied hotly, but he did not come any closer. "Drop the blades, Castiel. And come with me. I promise you won't be punished for your rebellion if you do." He quirked John's face into a kind smile "Come, Castiel," he said, reaching out. "Come home."

Castiel hesitated for a moment. "No!" He said finally, deciding on his answer. He lashed out with his blade, cutting John's hand. Michael did not flinch, but Dean grabbed onto the back of Castiel's shirt and whimpered.

"Don't hurt him, Cas." Dean whispered, his grip tightening in the fabric.

Michael smirked, twisting John's face into yet another unfamiliar expression. "Yes. You don't want to hurt John, do you Castiel?" He said, his voice calm and mocking.

Castiel's brows pinched together with his frown. He ground his teeth in thought. Gabriel was indisposed, Bobby and Sammy were nowhere to be found and Michael currently had the upper hand in John's body. He could not harm Michael or he would harm John. Castiel's only option was to run, but that meant leaving everyone behind except Dean. His mission was all the Winchesters, not just one.

Castiel made his decision then. He gathered his energy and flew himself and Dean into the room that they had shared. He was relieved to find Sammy still in the crib, either unconscious or sleeping. He was less relieved to see Bobby collapsed just outside the door. He shook off his concern, focusing on his mission of getting the Winchester children out and away. He carefully lifted Sammy out of the crib and grabbed Dean's hand.

"What about Bobby?" Dean asked. Castiel hesitated. If he left him here, could he be sure that Bobby would remain unharmed? He could carry him… He had not expended that much energy. Castiel led Dean over to Bobby, and grabbed a handful of the fabric of his shirt. He steeled himself, ready to lift off and flew. He didn't make it very far, however and he and his load were sent sprawling into the trees of the forest surrounding Pastor Jim's church. They were at least a mile from Michael, but that was hardly an adequate distance to provide enough time to hide. Castiel was the first to sit up after their flight, Sammy still clutched to his chest. Dean followed.

"Are you hurt?" Castiel asked. "I'm sorry for the landing. Mr. Singer was a bit heavier than I expected." He said sheepishly.

"I heard that." Bobby grumbled from his spot a few feet away from them. "Where are John and Gabriel?" He asked upon noticing their absences.

"John has accepted Michael and allowed him to take him as a vessel." Castiel reported. "And Gabriel is… unconscious." He finished. He hoped Gabriel was unconscious. He had no way of knowing, but the alternative was too painful for him to consider. "Do you know what happened to make John accept?"

"That idgit." Bobby spat. "Raphael came in and told John that part of the church had collapsed on the two of you. He said John'd be able to help you if he let Michael possess him for a bit." He added.

"We were in the basement. Nothing collapsed on us." Castiel said.

"Sure, we know that now, but John… John wasn't thinking straight. He just heard the crashing and the shaking and thought the worst." Bobby said, rubbing a hand down his face.

"Will Michael let Daddy go?" Dean piped up. He had tears in his eyes.

"Yes." Castiel said immediately. "I just need to bargain with him."

"You aren't thinkin' of going with them, are you?" Bobby asked incredulously. "Then all of this was for nothing."

"No…" Castiel said. "It will be part of my bargain. I will only go with them if they let John go and leave your memories be." He continued thoughtfully. "You know everything you need to about repelling angels. Take Dean and Sammy and get them somewhere you can ward." He handed Sammy to Bobby then, the baby still very much asleep.

"No!" Dean cried, throwing his arms around Castiel's neck. "If you go with them I won't see you anymore." He said, voice muffled by Castiel's shoulder. "Get Gabriel to wake up and tell them to go away." He begged.

"Cas," Bobby began, looking the fledgling straight in the eye. "If bargaining with demons is bad news, then bargaining with angels is too." He finished.

"I am an angel, Mr. Singer." Castiel replied gravely. "I know they will hold up their end of the bargain. I'll make sure of it." He said.

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Bobby asked. Castiel surreptitiously summoned his blade, trying to be discrete around Dean. "No, Cas! That's not an option."

"No, it's the only solution I have." Castiel said firmly. "They need me alive. If they didn't… They would have…" he trailed off, not liking what he himself was implying. "If they didn't need me alive, they would have killed me already." He finished, looking down at the ground. Dean's hand tightened in the fabric of his shirt at the words.

"So, what? Once they get you to Heaven, there's no stopping them from coming back." Bobby reasoned. "Face it, Cas. You gotta come with us. There's no other way."

"You can ward off angels…" Castiel explained. "You have the wards that hide you." He continued. "Once they go back to Heaven, they may come back to try to find you, but it will be impossible." He finished determinedly.

"They found us here." Bobby spat.

"Because they were looking." Castiel replied. "I would not be surprised if they did not attempt this at many of the other places we stayed. They may have been watching this place even before Gabriel brought us here." He turned and gently untangled Dean's fingers from his shirt. "This is the best chance, Mr. Singer. Take Dean and Sammy and get them some place hidden."

Bobby's gaze hardened, but he nodded. "What about John?" He asked.

"You will most likely have to come find him. I will tell Michael to leave his memories intact." Castiel honestly wasn't sure how they would meet up again after he left. "Once I go with them, Michael will want to plan and regroup. You will have at least a day to get away." Castiel said before readying himself to fly again.

"Wait!" Dean shouted, grabbing Castiel around the waist. "Don't go. Please don't go!" He begged, burying his face into Castiel's shirt and sobbing. "You're 'sposed to protect us, remember? You can't go!" Castiel turned to reply, grabbing Dean's hands and wrapping the boy into a hug. Dean buried his face into Castiel's shoulder. "I don't want you to go…"

"I…" Castiel looked to Bobby for help.

"Isn't that touching?" A deep, sinister voice asked from behind. Bobby's eyes grew impossibly wide. Castiel didn't even need to turn around to know who it was.

"Raphael." Castiel hissed in greeting. He turned, summoning his angel blade again and released Dean. "I have a bargain to make with Michael." He informed. Raphael raised an eyebrow.

"You intend to negotiate with Michael?" Raphael chuckled. "What could _you _possibly have to offer?" He asked, towering over Castiel.

Castiel immediately turned the blade on himself, holding the tip over his heart. "My life." He said, standing tall, despite his uncertainty. There was no guarantee the angel blade would kill him, or that Raphael would care if it did.

Raphael laughed heartily at that. "Go ahead." He dared.

Castiel tried not to let the uncertainty show in his face. "Okay." He replied pushing the tip of the blade forward and into his chest, just slightly… just enough to draw blood and grace. Dean screamed in alarm and was surprisingly echoed by Raphael, who grabbed for the blade. Castiel stopped and quirked an eyebrow at Raphael, copying Gabriel's smug expression, despite how hard his vessel's heart was beating. Jimmy was thankfully resting now. "It seems that my life is more important than you implied." Castiel taunted. He spared an apologetic glance at Dean, who was sobbing.

Raphael didn't laugh this time. He frowned deeply, anger burning in his eyes at being outsmarted. "What do you want?" He asked, crossing his arms.

"I want to speak to Michael." Castiel said. He kept the blade where it was. "I want his word that he won't go against our agreement." He said this loudly.

"Fine!" Raphael spat. He disappeared then.

"Quick, Cas! Let's run away!" Dean said, tugging on Castiel's sleeve. "We can get away while he's not here." Castiel didn't move.

"I need to free your father from my brother." Castiel said. "I plan to exchange myself for him."

"No!" Dean shouted, trying to pry Castiel's fingers away from the hilt of the blade. "Stop!" He pleaded. "I don't want you to! Get Gabriel! Cas!" He gave up and started pulling at the angel's clothes. Castiel scooped Dean into another hug with an arm that was not holding his blade.

"I'm sorry, Dean." Castiel squeezed Dean tight to himself. "I am sorry." His voice shook. "You…" _need a father more than me _Castiel thought, but did not say. "You will take care of Sammy? Make sure that your father remembers what Gabriel and I told him?" He asked instead. Dean didn't need logic now, he needed something to do.

Dean opened his mouth to reply, but at that moment, Raphael appeared again with Michael at his side. He looked at Castiel and Dean, a frown pulling at his borrowed face. "Raphael has told me you wish to bargain with me." He stated. Castiel nodded, gently pushing Dean out of his grasp. "What is it that you have to offer me and what is it that you want in return?" He asked.

"My life." Castiel repeated, tightening his grip on his angel blade. "My life for their memories and the promise that you will leave them alone."

Michael looked thoughtful for a second. Raphael looked alarmed.

"Sir, you can't possibly be thinking of agreeing to that?!" Raphael asked angrily. "Kill the insolent whelp and let us be done with it."

Michael glared at Raphael. "I can't kill him, you fool." He said matter-of-factly. "He is an integral part of the plan and regardless of that… we do not kill our own, Raphael." Michael stated.

Raphael silently fumed as Michael kneeled, so that he was face to face with Castiel. "You have no guarantee that we will keep our end of the bargain." Michael commented. "And you still want to deal?"

"I don't have another choice." Castiel replied honestly. "It is either leave the Winchesters with the knowledge to protect themselves, as was my mission," he looked blatantly at Michael when he said this. "…Or kill myself here." He placed his free hand over the wound on his chest, still eking blood. "I will not return to Heaven having failed my first mission, no matter what the cause."

Michael smirked. "Very well." He said. "I agree. I will leave the Winchesters alone and you will come with us." Raphael looked as if he were about to explode.

"You will also leave their memories." Castiel demanded. Michael nodded in agreement.

"However, Castiel. Know that when the time for the End has come, I will have to come and claim Dean." Michael warned, a smirk clear on his borrowed face.

"Dean will have to accept you first." Castiel spat back. "And I highly doubt that he will ever now."

"We will see." Michael replied hotly. "Now come, Castiel. It is time to leave." Michael reached for Castiel and in a flash of bright light and deafening sound, they were gone, save for John, who collapsed into the grass soon after and a lone, silver blade.

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><p><strong>TBC...<strong>

**(one more chapter and then I'll let you know what I plan to do next. Also I am an awful person and I'm sorry.)**


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N: Hello guys. Sorry about the delay. I had two exams last week and three on Monday, so updating wasn't really possible. Luckily, I've did well on the two from last week and one on Monday. I'm still waiting to hear about the other two. **

**So here is the final chapter. I don't want to end it! It was really fun to write and I'm going to miss writing Fledgling! Castiel. There will be a pretty big secondary author's note at the end, so stick around if you want to read for some updates. **

**Other than that, thank you all for your support, your reviews, favorites, follows and everything else. You guys really made finishing the story worth it. **

**And on that incredibly cheesy note, enjoy!**

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><p>John woke up to a dirty motel ceiling. He could hear Dean's soft sobbing in one end of the room and Bobby's uncharacteristically gentle voice soothing him. He remained still, staring at the minuscule cracks in the ceiling and trying to piece together what had happened. They were at a church, last he could remember. Pastor Jim's church, so why were they in a motel? Once again he heard another soft sob and Bobby's consolation.<p>

Then it came back to him. "Dean?!" John shouted as he shot upwards, turning towards the noise. Dean was sat on a chair, knees to his chin and tears streaking down his red and puffy face. Sammy's carrier was on the floor next to his chair, the baby sleeping soundly within.

"Daddy!" Dean shouted, getting down from the chair. His voice sounded less elated and more worried. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." He said. "Are you?"

Dean's face scrunched up again, ready for another session of crying. "Yeah… But Daddy… Cas-"

"What?!" John interrupted. "What happened to Cas? Michael said he'd help both of you!" Dean didn't answer, just dissolved into more sobbing. John picked him up and cradled him to his chest. "What's the matter, bud?" He asked. When Dean didn't reply, he looked to Bobby for help.

"They took Cas." Bobby said, eyes on the floor. His face was a stoic mask.

"What? Who? Who took Cas?" John asked, horror-struck. "What are you waiting here for? You should have gone after him!" He made to get off the bed, but Bobby put up a hand to halt him.

"The angels took Cas, John." Bobby said. His voice was starting to hold notes of anger. "He let them take him in exchange for you."

"But Michael said—" John began, but Bobby cut him off.

"Are you really that stupid, John?!" Bobby shouted, standing abruptly and making his way over to the bed. "Gabriel told you what their goal was and you let one of em' possess you!" He was towering over John now, voice just an octave below shouting. "Because of that, we couldn't run away and Cas had to give himself up for you." He poked John in the chest, just above Dean's head, and sat on the opposite bed in a huff. "All of this for nothing, John!" He crossed his arms. "Pastor Jim's deaf because of us and he didn't even save an angel." Bobby looked down again, the emotions sliding from his face.

John was silent, completely shocked by this news. "Where… Where's Gabriel?" He swallowed.

"Don't know, when we made it back to the church he was gone. They probably took him too." Bobby said. His voice was dangerously quiet.

"You can't know that for sure—" There was a knock on the motel door, cutting John off. Dean cowered closer into his father's chest.

Bobby stood from the motel bed and made his way to the door cautiously. He pulled a long, silver blade from his back pocket before he peeked through the peep hole on the door. "Holy-" He exclaimed before pulling the door open to reveal a rather disheveled looking Gabriel. "I though they took you too."

"No." Gabriel said, lacking his usual cocky smirk or tone. "Tried to kill me though. Luckily Raphael's stupid. Thought I'd bleed out." He made his way into the room.

Dean looked up from his father's chest, eyes lighting up. "Gabriel!" He shouted, jumping out of his father's lap and throwing his arms around Gabriel's legs.

"Woah, woah, easy now." Gabriel exclaimed in a huff of air. "You'll knock me over if you're not careful." Bobby went to steady him at that, but Gabriel waved him off.

"You okay?" John asked, standing up from his place on the bed.

"Oh, just peachy." Gabriel sassed, leaning down to pick Dean up. He gave a grunt of pain as he stood back up and sat on the bed opposite John's. "My brother's gone and I can't get him back." Gabriel said, running a hand through Dean's hair. His voice was rough and low.

"What do you mean? Can't you just go up into Heaven and grab him?" John asked. Gabriel frowned and shook his head.

"Maybe if I didn't have two holes in my grace to deal with." Gabriel spat. "Raphael may not have killed me, but he's definitely put me out of commission for a while." Dean looked down in worry, but upon finding no injury, turned his gaze back to Gabriel. The archangel just smiled and ruffled his hair again.

"How long will it take you to heal?" Bobby asked, crossing his arms again.

"A while." Gabriel repeated, looking at his feet.

"How long is that?" Bobby asked.

"I don't know, Bobby." Gabriel huffed. "Usually, angels die from a stab wound with an angel blade!" He snapped. Dean whimpered and he softened then, running a hand through his hair again.

"Ca-Cas st-stabbed himself with it." Dean stuttered between fresh sobs. Gabriel's frown deepened, but he rubbed Dean's back in comfort.

"Michael and Raphael won't let him die." Gabriel sounded less than relieved at this fact. He looked to Bobby. "Why'd he do that?"

"He made a deal with Michael. His life for our memories and the promise he'll leave us alone." Bobby reported solemnly.

"Clever, Cas." Gabriel commented with a self-satisfied smirk. "Look, I need to take time to heal. The quicker I heal, the sooner I can get Cas back." He said as he stood and placed Dean on the bed. "Until then, you're going to have to fend for yourselves." He looked down at Dean and smirked. "Think you can do that, Dean-o? Keep Bobby and your dad in line for your brother, okay?" He looked behind Dean to see Sammy sleeping in his carrier. His smirk morphed into a soft smile.

"Where are you going?" Bobby demanded, stepping between Gabriel and the door.

"I'm going to disappear until these heal." Gabriel motioned to his body, the smirk easily sliding back onto his face. He had no outward sign of injury, but Bobby could see the archangel favoring one side more than the other. "I'll keep an ear on you, so if something goes wrong… or you do something stupid, I'll come try to bail you out. Don't count on it though." He took a breath and then continued. "Keep Dean and Sam out of hunting, that's the best you can do right now."

"You can't leave. There's no guarantee Michael won't come back now that they have Cas." Bobby reasoned angrily, refusing to move.

"Michael might be an asshole, but he won't renege on a deal." Gabriel said. Bobby didn't look convinced so he shrugged. "Look, I know my brothers, and Michael takes his deals very seriously. You probably won't have to worry for another ten years at the least, and that's assuming I don't get Cas back before then." He explained. "If they do come back, I'll help you hide out again. You know who to call." He winked and disappeared, leaving no room for Bobby to argue further.

"What are we going to do now…?" Dean asked, voice still hiccuping from his long crying session.

John was about to answer before Bobby answered for him. "First, we're heading back to my place, we're getting my stuff and we're getting another base that's a little more kid friendly." He declared. "Then, we're going to get you in school. You're five, right? You should be learning your ABCs, not exorcism chants."

"I know my ABCs..." Dean argued petulantly.

Bobby rolled his eyes and turned to John. "We're going to do this the way Gabriel said. We're keeping them out of hunting, we're going to prevent that damn plan Heaven has and we're going to wait for Gabriel to get Castiel back." He said determinedly. "Sound good?" John nodded dumbly. "Good, now get your kids, we're getting in the Impala in ten." He walked out the door and slammed it with finality.

John swallowed and steeled himself. He could worry about the demon later, he supposed. Right now he had Dean and Sammy to take care of. They were the ones that mattered, them and Castiel.

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><p><strong>End<strong>

**A/N: only not really, because there's going to be a sequel! The reason I want to make a sequel instead of just adding more chapters onto this one is, 1) because personally when I see WIP fics that are longer than about 50 chapters, I question if I want to emotionally invest myself into it only to have it not finish and, as a result, I don't read it. And 2) There's going to be a pretty substantial time jump, so I kind of wanted to make it like a "book 2" sort of thing. ****As far as the sequel goes, I've got a basic road map down and I just have to jot down some of the plot points I might have left hanging in this story, so I can tie them up in the next one. **

**Next on the list is some future plans, (If you care, if you don't, then you don't have to stay.)**

**So I'm working on that Gabriel and Loki one-shot I mentioned, and it's probably going to be more than a one-shot, it seems. I'll probably post the first chapter up during my spring break, which just so happens to be next week! I wanted it to be just a one-shot, but it has turned into my baby and I can't stop. I might also be running a Hetalia fic in the near future. I've got the first 20 some chapters of it written. I'm just kind of nervous about it... The yet to be named Plan B sequel will probably have it's first chapter up after my finals, as I'll have time to go on a writing spree at that point. PM or Tumblr me if you want more info and I'll give what I can. (Kasisnotofimport is my url, fyi)**

**Finally, for all of you who have read my fanfiction, thank you very much for coming on this adventure with me. It took a lot of weird, twisty turns, but I finished it! Believe me, I knew about as much as you did about what was going to happen some weeks. This is going to sound incredibly emotional, but it really means a lot to me that you all read this, because it is a culmination of my feelings about family and childhood and a lot of other things. I hope I was able to give you a good story and I hope you enjoy the sequel just as much. **


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